| Term | Definition |
|---|
| acetylcholine | neurotransmitter |
| afferent neuron | carries nerve impulses toward the CNS (brain, spinal cord) |
| anesthesia | loss of sensation or feeling |
| arachnoid mater | weblike midle layer cavering the brain |
| astrocytes | a glial cell shaped like a star |
| axon | nerve cell process that carries impulses away from the cell body |
| catecholamines | norepinephrine and epinephrine |
| cerebrospinal fluid | fluid in the brain and spinal cord |
| dendrite | carries impulses toword the neuron cell body |
| dermatome | skin surface areas supplied by a single spinal nerve |
| dopamine | neurotransmitter |
| dura mater | tough fibrous membrane covering the brain and the spinal cord |
| efferent neuron | a neuron conducting impulses outwards from the brain or spinal cord |
| endorphins | reduce the sensation of pain and affect emotions |
| enkephalins | having opiate qualities and occurring in the brain, spinal cord, and other parts of the body |
| fight-or-flight-response | increased sympathetic impulses allowing the body to deal with any type of stress |
| ganglia | A group of nerve cells forming a nerve center, especially one located outside the brain or spinal cord |
| glia | branched cells and fibers that supports the tissue of the central nervous system |
| hydrocephalus | accumulation of fluid in the cavities of the brain, causing enlargement of the head in children |
| interneuron | a link between sensory neurons and motor neurons |
| meninges | the three membranes that enclose the vertebrate brain and spinal cord: the pia mater, arachnoid, and dura mater |
| microglia | phagocytic cells active in immune reactions of the central nervous system |
| motor neuron | A neuron that conveys impulses from the central nervous system to a muscle, gland, or other effector tissue |
| multiple sclerosis | A chronic autoimmune disease of the central nervous system in which gradual destruction of myelin occurs in patches throughout the brain or spinal cord or both, interfering with the nerve pathways and causing muscular weakness, loss of coordination, and speech and visual disturbances |
| myelin | a white fatty material that encloses certain axons and nerve fibers |
| neuron | nerve cell |
| neurotransmitter | transmits nerve impulses across a synapse |
| oligodendrocyte | form the myelin sheath of nerve fibers in CNS |
| parasympathetic nervous system | craniosacral system for rest and digest |
| pia mater | the fine vascular membrane that closely envelops the brain and spinal cord under the arachnoid and the dura mater |
| postganglionic neuron | autonomic neuron that conducts nerve impulse from a ganglion to cardiac, smooth muscles, and gland tissues |
| postsynaptic neuron | situated behind or occurring after a synapse |
| preganglionic neuron | the nerve fibers that supply a ganglion |
| presynaptic | situated in front of or occurring before a synapse |
| receptors | nerve endings that respond to sensory stimuli |
| reflex arc | the neural path of a reflex |
| saltatory conduction | nerve conduction that simply "jumps" around the myelin sheath and is much faster |
| Schwann cell | covers the nerve fibers in the peripheral nervous system and forms the myelin sheath |
| sensory neuron | a neuron conducting impulses inwards to the brain or spinal cord |
| sympathetic nervous system | flight-or-fight system |
| synapse | the junction between two neurons (axon-to-dendrite) or between a neuron and a muscle |
| synaptic cleft | the microscopic space between two neurons (axon-to-dendrite) |
| synaptic knob | contains vesicles with neurotransmitters |
Combine with other sets
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