Related topics: proceedings of the national academy of sciences , brain , neurons , nerve cells , multiple sclerosis
Nervous system
hideThe nervous system is a network of specialized cells that communicate information about an organism's surroundings and itself. It processes this information and causes reactions in other parts of the body. It is composed of neurons and other specialized cells called glial cells,(plural form glia), that aid in the function of the neurons. The nervous system is divided broadly into two categories: the peripheral nervous system and the central nervous system. Neurons generate and conduct impulses between and within the two systems. The peripheral nervous system is composed of sensory neurons and the neurons that connect them to the nerve cord, spinal cord and brain, which make up the central nervous system. In response to stimuli, sensory neurons generate and propagate signals to the central nervous system which then processes and conducts signals back to the muscles and glands. The neurons of the nervous systems of animals are interconnected in complex arrangements and use electrochemical signals and neurotransmitters to transmit impulses from one neuron to the next. The interaction of the different neurons form neural circuits regulate an organism's perception of the world and what is going on with its body, thus regulating its behavior. Nervous systems are found in many multicellular animals but differ greatly in complexity between species.
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News tagged with nervous system
Understanding the nervous system by walking in a neuron's shoes
Oct 21, 2008 |
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(PhysOrg.com) -- If you want to understand and predict the behavior of your young daughter, explains neurobiologist Christopher Fiorillo, you might observe how she reacts to various environmental factors. ...
Fit teenage boys are smarter, but muscle strength isn't the secret
Dec 07, 2009 |
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In the first study to demonstrate a clear positive association between adolescent fitness and adult cognitive performance, Nancy Pedersen of the University of Southern California and colleagues in Sweden find that better ...
Scientists: Man controlled robotic hand with thoughts
Dec 02, 2009 |
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(AP) -- A group of European scientists said Wednesday they have successfully connected a robotic hand to an amputee, allowing him to feel sensations in the artificial limb and control it with his thoughts.
Schizophrenia gene's role may be broader, more potent, than thought
Nov 19, 2009 |
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(PhysOrg.com) -- UCSF scientists studying nerve cells in fruit flies have uncovered a new function for a gene whose human equivalent may play a critical role in schizophrenia.
Regeneration can be achieved after chronic spinal cord injury
Medicine & Health / Neuroscience
Oct 28, 2009 |
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Scientists at the University of California, San Diego School of Medicine report that regeneration of central nervous system axons can be achieved in rats even when treatment delayed is more than a year after the original ...
One small step for neurons, one giant leap for nerve cell repair
Medicine & Health / Neuroscience
Oct 07, 2009 |
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The repair of damaged nerve cells is a major problem in medicine today. A new study by researchers at the Montreal NeurologicaI Institute and Hospital (The Neuro) and McGill University, is a significant advance towards a ...
Nerve cells live double lives
Medicine & Health / Neuroscience
Oct 06, 2009 |
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(PhysOrg.com) -- Scientists at the Friedrich Miescher Institute for Biomedical Research (part of the Novartis Research Foundation) have identified a new neural circuit in the retina responsible for the detection ...
A step toward better brain implants using conducting polymer nanotubes
Nanotechnology / Nanomaterials
Sep 29, 2009 |
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ANN ARBOR, Mich.---Brain implants that can more clearly record signals from surrounding neurons in rats have been created at the University of Michigan. The findings could eventually lead to more effective ...
Multiple sclerosis successfully reversed in animals
Aug 11, 2009 |
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(PhysOrg.com) -- A new experimental treatment for multiple sclerosis (MS) completely reverses the devastating autoimmune disorder in mice, and might work exactly the same way in humans, say researchers at ...
Popular insect repellent deet affects nervous system: study
Aug 05, 2009 |
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The active ingredient in many insect repellents, deet, has been found to be toxic to the central nervous system. Researchers writing in the open access journal BMC Biology say that more investigations are urgently needed ...
Researchers isolate first 'neuroprotective' gene in patients with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis
May 12, 2009 |
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A genetic variant that substantially improves survival of individuals with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), also known as Lou Gehrig's disease, has been indentified by a consortium of researchers led by John Landers, ...
Scientists ID gene key to Alzheimer's-like reversal
May 06, 2009 |
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(PhysOrg.com) -- A team led by researchers at MIT's Picower Institute for Learning and Memory has now pinpointed the exact gene responsible for a 2007 breakthrough in which mice with symptoms of Alzheimer's disease regained ...
Why Do We Have Fingerprints?
Apr 04, 2009 |
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(PhysOrg.com) -- Unlike most wrinkles on our bodies, which appear due to bending and stretching of the skin, fingerprints aren't the result of repeated motion. Each of us is born with a unique set of them, ...
Researchers identify a protein critical for memory, learning
Biology /
Feb 24, 2009 |
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Researchers from the University of Toronto and The Hospital for Sick Children (Sick Kids) have made a breakthrough discovery that may eventually change the way physicians approach treatment of learning and memory defects ...
Ladder-walking locusts show big brains aren't always best
Dec 24, 2009 |
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Scientists have shown for the first time that insects, like mammals, use vision rather than touch to find footholds. They made the discovery thanks to high-speed video cameras - technology the BBC uses to ...
