Mammalian Nervous System

Structure & Role of the Mammalian Nervous System

 The human nervous system consists of the:

o central nervous system (CNS) - the

brain and the spinal cord

o peripheral nervous system (PNS) - all

of the nerves in the body

 It allows us to

o Make sense of our surroundings and

respond to them

o Coordinate and regulate body

functions

 Information is sent through the nervous

system as nerve impulses - electrical signals
that pass along nerve cells known
as neurones

 A bundle of neurones is known as a nerve

Neurone Diagrams

 There are three main types of neurone: sensory, relay and motor

o Sensory neurones carry impulses from sense organs to the CNS (brain or spinal cord)

o Relay neurones (also known as intermediate neurones) are found inside the CNS
and connect sensory and motor neurones

o Motor neurones carry impulses from the CNS to effectors (muscles or glands)

 Neurones have a long fibre (axon)

 This means that less time is wasted transferring the impulse from one cell to another

 The axon is insulated by a fatty sheath with small uninsulated sections along it (called nodes)

 This means that the electrical impulse does not travel down the whole axon, but jumps from
one node to the next

 Their cell body contains many extensions called dendrites

 This means they can connect to many other neurones and receive impulses from them,
forming a network for easy communication

Identifying the types of neurone:

The three types of neurone

 Sensory neurones are long and have a cell body branching off the middle of the axon

 Relay neurones are short and have a small cell body at one end with many dendrites
branching off it

 Motor neurones are long and have a large cell body at one end with long dendrites
branching off it

The Reflex Arc

Voluntary Responses

 A voluntary response is one where you make a conscious decision to carry out a particular
action therefore it starts with your brain

o An example is reaching out to pick up a cup of coffee

 An involuntary (or reflex) response does not involve the brain as the coordinator of the
reaction and you are not aware you have completed it until after you have carried it out

 Involuntary actions are usually ones which are essential to basic survival and are rapid,
whereas voluntary responses often take longer as we consider what the consequences might
be before doing it

Reflex Responses

 An involuntary (or reflex) response does not involve the brain as the coordinator of the
reaction and you are not aware you have completed it until after you have carried it out

 This is an automatic and rapid response to a stimulus such as touching something sharp or
hot

 As it does not involve the brain, a reflex response is quicker than any other type of nervous
response

 This helps to minimise the damage to the body

A reflex

1. The pin (the stimulus) is detected by a pain/pressure/touch receptor in the skin

2. Sensory neurone sends electrical impulses to the spinal cord (the coordinator)

3. Electrical impulse is passed on to relay neurone in the spinal cord

4. Relay neurone connects to motor neurone and passes the impulse on

5. Motor neurone carries impulse to a muscle in the leg (the effector)

6. The muscle will contract and pull the foot up and away from the sharp object (the response)
Hormones & Their Associated Glands

What is a Hormone?

 A hormone is a chemical substance produced by a gland and carried by the blood

 The hormone alters the activity of one or more specific target organs i.e. they are chemicals
which transmit information from one part of the organism to another and bring about a
change

 The glands that produce hormones in animals are known collectively as the endocrine
system

The major endocrine glands in the body

Transport around the body

 Endocrine glands have a good blood supply as when they make hormones they need to get
them into the bloodstream (specifically the blood plasma) as soon as possible so they can
travel around the body to the target organs to bring about the response

 Hormones only affect cells with target receptors that the hormone can bind to. These are
either found on the cell membrane, or inside cells. Receptors have to be complementary to
hormones for there to be an effect.

 The liver regulates levels of hormones in the blood; transforming or breaking down any that
are in excess.

How hormones work

Important hormones in the human body:

Comparison of Nervous & Hormonal Control

Glucagon:

 Blood glucose levels are controlled by a negative feedback mechanism involving the
production of two hormones - insulin and glucagon

 Both hormones which control blood glucose concentration are made in the pancreas

 Insulin is produced when blood glucose rises and stimulates liver and muscle cells to
convert excess glucose into glycogen to be stored

 Glucagon is produced when blood glucose falls and stimulates liver and muscle cells to
convert stored glycogen into glucose to be released into the blood

Negative feedback regulation of blood glucose levels

The Hormone Adrenaline

 Adrenaline is known as the 'fight or flight' hormone as it is produced in situations where the
body may be in danger

o Flight = remove oneself rapidly from a dangerous situation eg. run away

o Fight = if flight is not possible, resort to physical combat to overcome danger

 It causes a range of different things to happen in the body, all designed to prepare it for
movement (ie fight or flight).

 These include:

 Increasing blood glucose concentration for increased respiration in muscle cells

 Increasing pulse rate and breathing rate so glucose and oxygen can be delivered to muscle
cells, and carbon dioxide taken away, from muscles cells more quickly

 Diverting blood flow towards muscles and away from non-essential parts of the body such
as the alimentary canal; again to ensure the reactants of respiration are as available as
possible

 Dilating pupils to allow as much light as possible to reach the retina so more information
can be sent to the brain
Homeostasis

 Homeostasis means that internal conditions within the body (such as temperature, blood
pressure, water concentration, glucose concentration etc) need to be kept within set
limits in order to ensure that reactions in body cells can function and therefore the organism
as a whole can live

 When one of these conditions deviates far away from the normal if not brought back within
set limits the body will not function properly and the eventual consequence without
medical intervention will be death

The Role of Insulin

 Insulin is secreted into the blood at times when blood glucose levels are high

 This is (most often) directly after a meal

 The kidneys can only cope with a certain level of glucose in the blood

o If the level gets too high, glucose gets excreted and is lost in the urine

o This is like running a car with a hole in the petrol tank; valuable fuel is being wasted

 To avoid this, insulin temporarily converts excess glucose into glycogen in the liver and
muscles

o Insulin decreases blood glucose concentration

 The glycogen is converted back to glucose several hours later when blood glucose levels have
dipped due to respiration in all tissues

The Concept of Negative Feedback:

 Negative feedback occurs when conditions change from the ideal or set point and returns
conditions to this set point

 It works in the following way:

o if the level of something rises, control systems are switched on to reduce it again

o if the level of something falls, control systems are switched on to raise it again

 Negative feedback mechanisms are usually a continuous cycle of bringing levels down and
then bringing them back up so that overall, they stay within a narrow range of what is
considered ‘normal’
The Skin & Homeostasis:

 Control of body temperature is a homeostatic mechanism

 The human body maintains the temperature at which enzymes work best, around 37°C

 If body temperature increases over this temperature, enzymes will denature and become
less effective at catalysing reactions such as respiration

The Structure of the Skin

Temperature Regulation by the Skin

 Regulation is controlled by the brain which contains receptors sensitive to the temperature
of the blood

 The skin also has temperature receptors and sends nervous impulses to the brain
via sensory neurones

 The brain responds to this information by sending nerve impulses to effectors in the skin
to maintain the temperature within a narrow range of the optimum, 37°C

 Fatty tissue under the dermis acts as a layer of insulation to prevent too much body heat
being lost through the skin
Homeostatic responses to changes in body temperature

Responses to changes in temperature: