Animal Nervous System

As you are reading this sentence, you are witnessing the power of your nervous
system as it performs its several functions at the same time. Its visual system
through the eyes' receptors processes , the motor system in the eye is controlling its
movement, while the brain's cerebral cortex helps you to keep your attention to what
you are reading. Even your current breathing rate and body temperature are being
maintained within the normal rate by the nervous system without you consciously
thinking about it. Together with the endocrine system, the nervous system exerts
control over all the other organ systems of the body. As explained earlier, the
nervous system is more specific and rapid in eliciting a response compared to the
endocrine system. The body's quick response is due to the synergistic effect of both
chemical and electrochemical signals. The nervous system performs its job by
gathering information from the environment through the sense organs, processing it
through the brain and executing a response either through a motor process from
your muscles for movement or a change in the organism's behavior or physiological
state. The nervous system keeps your body working properly despite the constant
changes that take place around you.

In the animal kingdom, the nervous system also differs in terms of complexity and
adaptive structures because animals differ in size or ability to move. Simple nervous
systems are found in simple and immobile animals. Cnidarians, echinoderms, and
coelenterates such as sea sponges lack a true nervous system but have a system of
separate but connected nerve cells known as nerve net.
They have a radial symmetry and although they lack a central nervous system, the
nerve nets are capable of supporting some of their complex behaviors. Flatworms
with bilateral symmetry have defined head and a tail regions that are equipped with a
central nervous system, two nerve cords, and a peripheral nervous system.
Flatworms have neurons that cluster together as ganglia, forming a small brain.
Mollusks, in general, have no brain but possess concentrated nerve knots known as
ganglia spread in their body. In highly developed mollusks, such as squids, giant
axons and a brain have developed to allow faster transport of responses.
Segmented worms, such as earthworms, have developed a more organized central
(brain), peripheral (nerve cord), and sympathetic nervous systems.

The segmented regions have a segmental ganglion, which is responsible for the
segment's sensory and motor functions. The insect's nervous system contains a
brain, ventral nerve cord, and ganglia, which controls movement and behaviors
without the need for much control from the brain. Vertebrates have a more complex
nervous system with centralized and specialized structures. Higher forms of
vertebrates, including humans, consist of a central nervous system that contains the
brain and the spinal cord, and a peripheral nervous system composed of sensory
and motor nerves.

NEURONS BASIC STRUCTURAL AND FUNCTIONAL UNIT OF THE NERVOUS

The nervous system is made up of specialized cells, called neurons, that can
transmit and receive electrical signals, and glial cells that provide support and
function to other neurons. The human body consists of around 86 billion neurons,
enough to last a lifetime. You may recall that neurons are the basic functional units
of structure and function of the nervous system. Neurons carry information through
the nervous system in the form of nerve impulses.

The billions of neurons spread out in the body come in all shapes and sizes, but they
share certain characteristics or features. Like other cells throughout the body, the
cell body of the neuron has a nucleus, a cytoplasm, and other organelles. Notice that
the largest part of the neuron is the cell body. The cell body contains the nucleus (a
large dark structure), which controls all the activities of the cell. You can think of the
cell body as the switchboard of the message-carrying neuron. Unlike other cells, the
cytoplasm of the neuron extends into two types of fiber-like structures. Running into
this switchboard are one or more tiny, branching, threadlike structures called
dendrites. The dendrites receive messages from neighboring cells and carry these
information toward the cell body. A neuron can have more than one dendrite and
each dendrite can have multiple branches. A single, long, taillike fiber that extends
from the cell body, called axon, carries messages away from the cell body and
passes them to other cells. The myelin sheath covers the axon, which speeds up the
travel of the nerve impulses. Each neuron has only one axon, but it can have many
dendrites.

These fibers are called axon terminals (ends). Axon terminals pass on messages to
the dendrites of other neurons. Axon terminals are usually found in some distance
from the cell body.
Other specialized support cells help the nervous system. Glial cells of the nervous
system, known as neuroglia, are scattered in voluminous number, about three times
more numerous than neurons.

They do not contain axons or dendrites to conduct nerve impulses. They perform
multiple functions such as providing support for the brain, repairing and
maintenance, insulating neurons, assisting in the development of the nervous
system, and providing metabolic functions for the neurons. Schwann cells, one type
of glial cells, form the Myelin sheath, which insulates and protects the neuron's
axons to help them send messages.

You receive signals or stimuli from the environment every single moment of your
lives. They carry information that tells you to be alert, to relax, stop, or focus. In
every moment, the nervous system plays a vital role in carrying thousands of these
signals throughout the body in the form of nerve impulses. A nerve impulse is a wave
of chemical and electrical change that is conducted along the membrane of a
neuron, which is basically from sensory neuron to interneuron to motor neuron.
When the neuron is not transmitting any signal, it is said to be in a resting state.
Neurons seem to be inactive, but in fact they maintain a steady charge difference
across their membranes, ready to transmit impulses when they need to. During this
state, the inside of its cell membranes is more negatively charged than the outside
environment. Resting potential is the difference in the charge across the membrane,
which contains the potential energy required to transmit the electrical energy as
needed.

When a nerve impulse travels along a neuron or from one neuron to another neuron,
it does so in the form of electrical and chemical signals. The nerve impulse enters
the neuron through the dendrites and travels along the length of the axon. The way
in which a nerve impulse travels from one neuron to another is a bit complex. When
a neuron is stimulated, it sends an electrical impulse that travels within that neuron
and before it can move to the next cell, it changes into a chemical signal. When you
start to hear the alarm, sensory receptors in your ears in the form of hair cells are
triggered, causing a change in the charge distribution and eliciting an electrical
impulse called the action potential.

When a nerve impulse is transmitted, gated channels for sodium ions open quickly
so that sodium ions could rush into the cell, causing the ion channels to also snap
shut and the membrane becomes positive. The succeeding sodium channels along
the axon open and more sodium ions rush into the cell, leading the impulse to move
forward. While the sodium channels are opening and shutting, potassium ion
channels are opening and closing more slowly. Potassium ions flow out of the cell,
making the membrane negative again and ready for the next transmission.

There is a tiny gap called synapse, between two adjacent neurons, and between
neurons and effectors. When the impulse reaches the axon terminals, somehow, the
nerve impulse must "jump" that gap. One of the simplest responses of the nervous
system is called a reflex, just like removing your hand as quick as you can when you
hold a hot object. it is an automatic response to a change in the environment.

DIVISIONS OF THE NERVOUS SYSTEM

The command center of the body is the CNS. As the main control center, it
processes information and sends instructions to other body parts.
All the information gathered by sensory receptors is delivered to the CNS through
nerve impulses. It receives and interprets the messages from the nerves, and stores
part of it for future use and sends signals to the peripheral nervous system (PNS).
Specifically, the CNS is composed of interneurons that interact with other nerves in
the body. After processing the information, the CNS responds by sending nerve
impulses to the motor nerves of the PNS. The CNS is composed of the brain and the
spinal cord, which is located in the midline of the body. The brain is the main control
center of the central nervous system.

It transmits and receives messages through the spinal cord. The brain is covered by
three protective layers called meninges. The outermost thick layer is called dura
mater, which protects the brain and the spinal cord; the middle layer is called
arachnoid mater; and the last layer is known as bid mater, which directly covers the
brain and the spinal cord like a plastic wrap.The cerebrospinal fluid fills the space
between the pia mater and arachnoid, which functions as a cushion and shock
absorber for the brain and helps in circulating substances throughout the brain and
the spinal cord. From the outside environment, the brain is encased in the cranial
cavity of the skull. It has several parts, which include the cerebral cortex, limbic
system, diencephalon (thalamus and hypothalamus), brain stem, and cerebellum.
The cerebrum is the largest region and the most noticeable part of the human brain.
It actually makes up 85 percent of the human brain. It is also what most people more
often refer to when they see a picture of the brain.
The cerebral cortex forms the thickest part of the cerebrum, consisting of folds that
look like hills called gyri (singular: gyrus) and valleys called sulci (singular: sulcus).
The cortex is divided into left and right hemispheres connected by a thick fiber
bundle known as corpus callosum, allowing information to cross the hemispheres.
The cortical hemispheres are also divided into lobes that are involved in various
functions.
The frontal lobe is the primary motor area located at the front of the brain over the
eyes, which governs the voluntary commands. The frontal lobe is also the seat of
reasoning, planning, speech, movement, emotions, decision making, and problem
solving. The parietal lobe, located at the top of the brain, is the primary sensory area
that receives information from the skin, skeletal muscles, and the joints. It is also
involved in speech understanding. The occipital lobe is located at the back of the
brain and is responsible for vision, specifically in seeing and understanding visual
stimuli. The temporal lobe is located at the base of the brain and is primarily involved
in processing and interpreting sounds or auditory stimuli.