Related topics: brain
Neuron
hideA neuron (pronounced /ˈnjʊərɒn/ N(Y)OOR-on, also known as a neurone or nerve cell) is an excitable cell in the nervous system that processes and transmits information by electrochemical signalling. Neurons are the core components of the brain, the vertebrate spinal cord, the invertebrate ventral nerve cord, and the peripheral nerves. A number of specialized types of neurons exist: sensory neurons respond to touch, sound, light and numerous other stimuli affecting cells of the sensory organs that then send signals to the spinal cord and brain. Motor neurons receive signals from the brain and spinal cord and cause muscle contractions and affect glands. Interneurons connect neurons to other neurons within the same region of the brain or spinal cord. Neurons respond to stimuli, and communicate the presence of stimuli to the central nervous system, which processes that information and sends responses to other parts of the body for action. Neurons do not go through mitosis, and usually cannot be replaced after being destroyed, although astrocytes have been observed to turn into neurons as they are sometimes pluripotent.
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News tagged with nerve cells
Researchers to develop probes to study cellular GPS
5 hours ago |
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An international group of researchers from Carnegie Mellon University, Goettingen Medical School in Germany and the University of Cambridge in the United Kingdom have received a Human Frontiers Science Program (HFSP) grant ...
Study shows neural stem cells in mice affected by gene associated with longevity
Nov 05, 2009 |
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(PhysOrg.com) -- A gene associated with longevity in roundworms and humans has been shown to affect the function of stem cells that generate new neurons in the adult brain, according to researchers at the Stanford University ...
Researchers show efficacy of gene therapy in mouse models of Huntington's disease
Medicine & Health / Neuroscience
Oct 30, 2009 |
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Researchers at the California Institute of Technology (Caltech) have shown that a highly specific intrabody (an antibody fragment that works against a target inside a cell) is capable of stalling the development of Huntington's ...
Stress-induced changes in brain circuitry linked to cocaine relapse
Oct 30, 2009 |
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(PhysOrg.com) -- Stress-evoked changes in circuits that regulate serotonin in certain brain regions can precipitate a low mood and a relapse in cocaine-seeking.
Damaging inflammatory response could hinder spinal cord repair
Medicine & Health / Neuroscience
Oct 21, 2009 |
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(PhysOrg.com) -- The inflammatory response following a spinal cord injury appears to be set up to cause extra tissue damage instead of promoting healing, new research suggests.
Experimental treatments restore partial vision to blind people
Medicine & Health / Neuroscience
Oct 20, 2009 |
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Two experimental treatments, a retinal prosthesis and fetal tissue transplant, restored some vision to people with blinding eye diseases. The findings, presented at Neuroscience 2009, the annual meeting of the Society for ...
Researchers find ways to encourage spinal cord regeneration after injury
Medicine & Health / Neuroscience
Oct 20, 2009 |
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Animal research is suggesting new ways to aid recovery after spinal cord injury. New studies demonstrate that diet affects recovery rate and show how to make stem cell therapies safer for spinal injury patients. The findings ...
Compound shows potential for slowing progression of ALS
Oct 19, 2009 |
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A chemical cousin of a drug currently used to treat sepsis dramatically slows the progression of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, better known as ALS or Lou Gehrig's disease, in mice. The results offer a bit of good news in ...
Caltech scientists create robot surrogate for blind persons in testing visual prostheses
Technology / Computer Sciences
Oct 19, 2009 |
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Scientists at the California Institute of Technology (Caltech) have created a remote-controlled robot that is able to simulate the "visual" experience of a blind person who has been implanted with a visual ...
A master mechanism for regeneration?
Medicine & Health / Neuroscience
Oct 19, 2009 |
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ANN ARBOR, Mich.---Biologists long have marveled at the ability of some animals to re-grow lost body parts. Newts, for example, can lose a leg and grow a new one identical to the original. Zebrafish can re-grow fins.
Scientists find 'molecular trigger' for sudden death in epilepsy
Oct 14, 2009 |
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The most common gene for a syndrome associated with abnormal heart rhythms and sudden death triggers epileptic seizures and could explain sudden unexplained death in epilepsy, said researchers from Baylor College of Medicine ...
Brain power goes green
Medicine & Health / Neuroscience
Oct 14, 2009 |
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Our brains, it turns out, are eco-friendly. A study published in Science and reviewed by F1000 Biology members Venkatesh Murthy and Jakob Sorensen reveals that our brains have the amazing ability to be energy efficient.
New guidelines identify best treatments to help ALS patients live longer, easier
Medicine & Health / Neuroscience
Oct 12, 2009 |
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New guidelines from the American Academy of Neurology identify the most effective treatments for amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), often called Lou Gehrig's disease. The guidelines are published in the October 13, 2009, ...
Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis may involve a form of sudden, rapid aging of the immune system
Oct 08, 2009 |
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Premature aging of the immune system appears to play a role in the development of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), or Lou Gehrig's disease, according to research scientists from the Maxine Dunitz Neurosurgical Institute ...
Study pinpoints key mechanism in brain development, raising question about use of antiseizure drug
Medicine & Health / Neuroscience
Oct 08, 2009 |
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Researchers at the Stanford University School of Medicine have identified a key molecular player in guiding the formation of synapses — the all-important connections between nerve cells — in the brain. This discovery, based ...
