The Neuron Nerve Net Controversy

Concept 6.1 Biologists use microscopes and the tools of biochemistry to study cells 1. The study of cells has been limited by their small size, and so they were not seen and described until 1665, when Robert Hooke first looked at dead cells from an oak tree. His contemporary, Anton van Leeuwenhoek, crafted lenses and with the improvements in optical aids, a new world was opened. Magnification and resolving power limit what can be seen. Explain the difference. Magnification is the ratio of an object’s image size to its real size. Resolution is a measure of the clarity of the image; it is the minimum distance two points can be separated and still be distinguished

The team then observed the same cheek cells, but dyed them, allowing them to more clearly see the different organelles. They noticed that the nucleus look more defined and the pigmented cell membranes made it easier to distinguish the different cells from one another. Moreover, the biologists could see specs within each of the cell's cytoplasm, probably resembling its various organelles. After drawing what they observed through the compound light microscope, the scientists moved onto the dyed and undyed onion cells.

The nervous system is made up of basic units called neurons. The main role of the neurons is to receive, integrate and transmit information throughout the body. There are some neuroglial cells found in nervous system aswell which provide support to the neurons by giving protection and nourishment Neurons have nerve processes that looks like finger like projections extended from the nerve cell body. They also contain axons and dendrites which enable them to transmit signals throughout the body. Normally, axon carry signals away from the cell body and dendrites carry signals toward the cell body according to Regina Bailey (2013). Neurons have three different shapes: bipolar, unipolar and multipolar where bipolar has two neuronal processes coming out of the cell body, unipolar has only one neuronal process coming out of the cell body and multipolar has many neuronal processes coming out of the cell body.

The progress of neuroscience has been significant in the past 500 years. and with the advance of technology, there is yet a multitude of chapters left to write in the history books of neuroscience. The book The Tale of the Dueling Neurosurgeons: written by Sam Kean was an engrossing and captivating read. It gives the reader a better appreciation for the growing pains of neuroscience and provides an educational, albeit entertaining overview of the anatomy and physiology of the brain and nervous system. From the early life and discoveries of Santiago Ramón y Cajal and his fascination with Golgi’s method la razione nera, which allowed Cajal to deduct after observing

Neurons, nerve cells, have three basic parts: the cell body, dendrites, and axon. Neurons transmit signals to other nerve cells and throughout the body. They are simple components in the nervous system. The cell body includes the nucleus, which is the control center of the neuron. The dendrite branches off the cell body and receives information. The axon is attached to the cell body and sends information away from the cell body to other cells. When the axon goes through myelination, the axon part of the neuron becomes covered and insulated with fat cells, myelin sheath. This increases the speed and efficiency of information processing in the nervous system. Synapse are gaps between neurons, this is where connections between the axons and dendrites.

1. Neurons is a basic building block of the nervous system. The sensory nerves carry the message from body tissues to the brain and spinal chord to be processed. The motor neurons are then used to send instructions to the body tissue from the brain and spinal cord. Dendrites, which are connected to the body cell (soma) receive information and pass it through the axon. Myelin sheath covers the axon and helps speed the process. When triggered by a signals from our senses or other neurons, the neuron fires an impulse called the action potential. The resting potential is the neuron’s visual charge of positive

This work coined the term neurology, and was not the result of his own personal and unaided exertions; he acknowledged his debt to Sir Christopher Wren, who provided drawings, Thomas Millington, and his fellow anatomist Richard Lower. It abounds in new information, and presents an enormous contrast with the vaguer efforts of his predecessors.

A study was performed by Merzenich in 1986 in which the index finger of a monkey was amputated, and signals were monitored in the corresponding part of the monkey's corticol map (3). Since the monkey's finger was no longer attached to the body, the logical hypothesis is that there would be no signals coming from the finger's area to the nervous system. However, every time the two fingers adjacent to that of the amputated one were touched, there were nerve impulses in the spinal cord. This led the scientists to believe that there are existing axon branches that become unbranched after normal input ends.

The proof I have behind these questions lies in microscopic images of the brain cell

Neurons (also known as neurons, nerve cells and nerve fibers) are electrically excitable and the most important cells in the nervous system that functions to process and transmit information. Neurons have a large number of extensions called dendrites. They often look likes branches or spikes extending out from the cell body. It is primarily the surfaces of the dendrites that receive chemical messages from other neurons.

Conversely, the failure of axons to grow towards Molecule x may not support our hypothesis.

Also, there are some Martinotti(triangular or polygonal shaped multipolar neurons) and granular neurons. Afferent fibers projecting from the thalamus, corticocortical connections come to here and IV layer. These synapses both efferent cortical neurons and intercortical( granular, Martinotti and horizontal types)neurons.

Duong, H., & Gest, T. (2013, June 6). Visual System Anatomy. Retrieved July 8, 2015,

My neuron was made of red acetate, because I wanted a material that can be managed and cut it, without great difficulty. First, on a piece of Xerox paper, I draw the two main parts of the neuron. Next, I traced my pictures on the acetate with a permanent marker to outline them. After that, I used a coffee stirrer to put together the soma and the axon. For the nucleus, I utilized a pink bead. In addition, I wrapped the axon with clear tape to represent the myelin sheath. Finally, I added the dendrites and axon terminals, which were made of black yarn. I carefully attached these elements with a hot glue gun. I made several mistakes and I have to try several times, until I was satisfied.

To test the hypothesis that all axon potentials initiate in the AIS, voltage-sensitive dye was injected to obtain whole cell somatic recordings. Transgenic mice that expressed green fluorescent protein or enhanced green fluorescent protein were used for the purpose of neuron selection. Parasagittal slices of the cerebellar were examined with a confocal imaging system to ensure absolute neuron morphology. Selected neurons were loaded with voltage-sensitive dye through a glass patch electrode, and whole cell recordings were taken under IR-DIC video microscopy. The neuron was stained via glass patch in room temperature for 20-50 minutes to ensure optimum uptake into the cell, after staining the selected neuron was incubated at room temperature for 1-1.5 hours. The soma was illuminated with a 450mW microscope, the fluorescence of the stained cell was