Neural Communication

Assignment Part 1

            The nervous system plays a critical role in transmitting information and triggering next course of action depending on the time of signals relayed from sensory receptors. Information transmission commences with sensory receptors contacting the dendrites which act as the antennae of the neuron and have branching structure which allows them to collect information from many neurons before relaying they to axon (Garrett, 2015, p.15). After receiving information from nearby dendrites, the axon sends signals to the neuron. Axon is always close to dendrites of another neuron, but they do not touch other neuron dendrites. Instead, they form a synaptic connection. The neurons are covered with a thousand synaptic connections which act as the only point of communication from one neuron to the next (Garrett, 2015).

            The presynaptic and postsynaptic terminals dictate how information flows from one neuron to another neuron. At the presynaptic terminal, the neuron either gets excited, modulated or inhibited based on the information received from the sensory receptors (Garrett, 2015, p. 16). Sometimes the information may not require any course of action, and in such a case, the neuron is inhibited. However, it can get excited or modulated at the synaptic junction in readiness to sending appropriate response across the body cells from which information is originating.

            The synapse coordinates information from presynaptic to postsynaptic membranes of the nerve cell. It carries out this function either through an electric synapse or a chemical synapse which Garrett (2015) posits that “The terminals contain chemical neurotransmitters, which the neuron releases to communicate with a muscle or an organ or the next neuron in a chain” (p.15). The choice of the appropriate synapse, electric or chemical depends on the availability of a connection between one neuron’s axon terminal and dendrites. The presence of connection prompts an electric synapse while the absence of connection when the synapse is an empty space requires a chemical synapse. The neurotransmitters facilitate information flow from one neuron to another. 

Assignment Part 2

            Pan and Chan (2017) article Regulation and Dysregulation of Axon Infrastructure by Myelinating Glia investigates the neurological consequences of a damaged axon. Axon plays an important role in the nervous system by sending signals as received from the dendrites. The study aimed at looking what happens when axon loss occurs and subsequent neurodegeneration. In most cases, it results in demyelinating illnesses such as multiple sclerosis. This context is well understood, and the authors focus on understanding the less popular secondary degeneration when axon loss occurs. 

            They found out that axon-glial plays a crucial role when axon loss occur on during illnesses which affect the proper functioning of the neurons. They established that the disruption of the cytoskeleton, the nodal architecture and other components of the axon infrastructure could be mediated leading to a near normal transmission of signals through the axon-glial during pathophysiological damage following demyelination.

            This article extends my knowledge of neurobiology by giving an insight why people suffering from diseases such as sclerosis following the damage of axon can still enjoy a near-normal life of normal nervous system actions among others. The research echoes Garrett (2015) vision of finding solutions that ensure individuals suffering from a brain injury can enjoy a near-normal life through a brain corrective mechanism. Furthermore, the article has broadened my knowledge of the functioning of the nervous system following an injury and the process that occurs that help neurons afterward to carry out their functions. Additionally, it has made me understands the underlying of the axon and how they coordinate after the demyelination through the myelinating glia which acts as the potential mediator of pathophysiological damage.

 References

Garrett, B. (2015). Brain and behavior: An introduction to biological psychology (4th ed.). Los Angeles, CA: SAGE Publications, Inc.

Pan, S., & Chan, J. R. (2017). Regulation and dysregulation of axon infrastructure by myelinating glia. J Cell Biol, JCB-201702150.