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neuron and central nervous system vocab
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31
Psychology
12th Grade
08/28/2013

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Term
1. Neuron
Definition
a nerve cell; the basic building block of the nervous system
Term
2. Dendrite
Definition
the bushy, branching extensions of a neuron that receive messages and conduct impulses toward the cell body.
Term
3. Axon
Definition
the extension of a neuron, ending in branching terminal fibers, through which messages pass to other neurons or to muscles or glands.
Term
4. Myelin Sheath
Definition
a layer of fatty tissue segmentally encasing the fibers of many neurons; enables vastly greater transmission speed of neural impulse hops from one node to the next.
Term
5. Action Potential
Definition
a neural impulse; a brief electrical charge that travels down an axon
Term
7. Refractory Period
Definition
period of time after a neuron fires and is waiting for signal to fire again
Term
8. Threshold
Definition
the level of stimulation required to trigger a neural impulse
Term
9. Synapse
Definition
the junction between the axon tip of the sending neuron and the dendrite or cell body of the receiving neuron
Term
10. Synaptic Gap/Cleft
Definition
the tiny gap at the junction of a synapse
Term
11. Neurotransmitters
Definition
chemical messengers that transverse the synaptic gap between neurons, when released by a sending neuron, neurotransmitters travel across the synapse and bind to receptor sites on the receiving neuron, thereby influencing whether that neuron will generate a neural impulse.
Term
12. Acetylcholine (ACh)
Definition
a neurotransmitter that, among its functions, triggers muscle contractions.
Term
13. Dopamine
Definition
movement, learning, attention, emotions, motor activity, mood
Term
14. Serotonin
Definition
mood, hunger, sleep, arousal, anger, body-temp, aggressiveness
Term
15. Norepinephrine
Definition
released in moment of danger, “fight-or-flight”, response, eating, sleeping
Term
16. Epinephrine
Definition
released to cope with stress, increases heart rate, dilates pupils
Term
17. GABA(gammaaminobutryic acid)-
Definition
major inhibitory neurotransmitter, calming, hunger, sleep.
Term
18. Glutamate
Definition
major excitatory neurotransmitter, memory and learning
Term
19. Endorphins
Definition
natural, opiatelike neurotransmitters linked to pain control and to pleasure
Term
20. Central Nervous System (CNS)-
Definition
the brain and spinal cord
Term
21. Peripheral Nervous System (PNS)-
Definition
the sensory and motor neurons that connect the central nervous system to the rest of the body.
Term
22. Autonomic Nervous System
Definition
- the part of the peripheral nervous system that controls the glands and the muscles of the internal organs (such as the heart). Its sympathetic division arouses; its parasympathetic division calms.
Term
23. Somatic Nervous System
Definition
the division of the peripheral nervous system that controls the body’s skeletal muscles.
Term
24. Sympathetic Nervous System
Definition
the division of the autonomic nervous system that arouses the body, mobilizing its energy in stressful situations
Term
25. Parasympathetic Nervous System
Definition
the division of the autonomic nervous system that calms the body, conserving its energy.
Term
26. Nerves
Definition
neural “cables” containing many axons. The bundled axons which are part of the peripheral nervous system, connect the central nervous system with muscles, glands, and sense organs.
Term
27. Sensory Neurons
Definition
neurons that carry incoming information from the sense receptors to the central nervous system.
Term
28. Interneurons
Definition
central nervous system neurons that internally communicate and intervene between the sensory inputs and the motor outputs
Term
29. Motor Neurons
Definition
neurons that carry outgoing information from the central nervous system to the muscles and glands.
Term
30. Reflex
Definition
a simple, automatic, inborn response to a sensory stimulus, such as the knee-jerk response.
Term
31. Neural Networks
Definition
interconnected neural cells
Term
32. Lesion
Definition
tissue destruction. A brain lesion is a naturally or experimentally caused destructions of brain tissue.
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