BIO 48

• Neurons that carry incoming information from the sense receptors to the central nervous system?

  sensory neurons
• Long nerve fiber that conducts away from the cell body of the neuron.?

  axons
• Cone shaped region of an axon where it joins the cell body?

  axon hillock
• The junction between two neurons or between a neuron and a muscle?

  synapse
• A bulb at the end of an axon in which neurotransmitter molecules are stored and released.?

  synaptic terminal
• Chemical messengers that cross the synaptic gaps between neurons?

  neurotransmitters
• The transmitting neuron in a synapse?

  presynaptic cell
• The neuron, muscle, or gland cell that receives the signal from a neuron?

  postsynaptic cell
• The voltage across a cell's plasma membrane?

  membrane potential
• The membrane potential of a neuron that is at rest?

  resting potential
• The process during the action potential when sodium is rushing into the cell causing the interior to become more positive?

  depolarization
• Channels that open or close in response to a change in the membrane potential?

  voltage-gated ion channels
• A neural impulse; a brief electrical charge that travels down an axon?

  action potential
• Return of the cell to resting state, caused by reentry of potassium into the cell while sodium exits the cell?

  repolarization
• The minimum membrane potential that must be reached in order for an action potential to be generated?

  threshold potential
• A layer of electrical insulation that surrounds the axon?

  myelin sheath
• Type of glial cell in the CNS that wrap axons in a myelin sheath?

  oligodendrocytes
• Type of glia in the PNS, Supporting cells of the peripheral nervous system responsible for the formation of myelin?

  schwann cells
• Gaps in the myelin sheath to which voltage-gated sodium channels are confined?

  nodes of ranvier
• Membrane-bounded compartments in which synthesized neurotransmitters are kept?

  synaptic vesicles
• The narrow gap that separates the presynaptic neuron from the postsynaptic cell?

  synaptic cleft
• Common vertebrate neurotransmitter, especially in neuromuscular junctions?

  acetylcholine
• A neurotransmitter that affects hunger,sleep, arousal, and mood?

  serotonin
• An inhibitory neurotransmitter in the brain?

  GABA
• A precursor of epinephrine that is secreted by the adrenal medulla and also released at synapses?

  norepinephrine
• Neurons that carry outgoing information from the central nervous system to the muscles and glands?

  motor neurons
• Includes the brain and spinal cord?

  cns
• The sensory and motor neurons that connect the CNS to the rest of the body?


  pns
• Contains most of a neuron's organelles and its nucleus.?

  cell body
• highly branched extensions that receive signals from other neurons?

  dendrites
• Important neurotransmitter in the CNS that acts on the sympathetic nervous system.?

  dopamine
• Neurotransmitter secreted by the adrenal medulla in response to stress. Also known as adrenaline.?

  epinephrine
• Natural analgesics that decrease pain perception.?

  endorphins
• Structural and functional unit of nervous system.?

  neuron
• Muscle cells or gland cells that carry out the body's response to stimuli.?

  effector cells
• Provide structural and metabolic support for neurons.?

  astrocytes
• Cells in the nervous system that support, nourish, and protect neurons.?

  glial cells
• A cluster of nerve cell bodies, often of similar function, located in the PNS.?

  ganglion
• Whitish nervous tissue of the CNS consisting of neurons and their myelin sheaths.?

  white matter
• The portions of the central nervous system that are abundant in cell bodies of neurons rather than axons. Unmyelinated.?


  gray matter