Title
Neuron
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Accompanying
Materials
Accompanying Materials

3 mini neurons in a petri dish

6 ‘structure of a neuron’ magnets
Contents may be subject to change depending upon availability.
Items of equivalent value may be substituted where necessary.
Just what is in there … ?
Just what is in there … ?
Human brain photo
The human brain looks like this:
The wrinkled surface is called the cortex and this is where
most of the brain cells (neurons) that are used for thinking
are situated.
Cerebrum
Cerebrum
This is the largest part of the brain, accounting for 85% of the
weight of the brain, controlling voluntary muscles, memory and
the ability to reason.
The cerebrum is covered by a
sheet of neural tissue known as
the cerebral cortex.
The word ‘cortex’ comes from
the Latin word for ‘bark’.
It is what we would actually see
if we were to look at a human
brain.
Cerebral Cortex
The cerebral cortex is a greyish colour and is very
wrinkled – this wrinkled surface increases the brain’s
surface area and therefore the number of neurons, giving
the cortex greater capacity for processing information.
The cerebral cortex is responsible for language, higher
level thought processes and human consciousness and
enables us to think, reason and use our imagination.
This is what makes human beings unique.
Nervous Systems
Nervous Systems
The brain is the body’s control centre but it needs help to
communicate with the rest of the body. The brain and the spinal
cord together make up the Central Nervous System (CNS), with
messages going backwards and forwards between the brain and
the body via the spinal cord.
The spinal nerves radiate from the spinal cord and they contain
nerve pathways which connect the CNS with the body’s organs.
These nerves are known as the Peripheral Nervous System
(PNS).
The PNS contains millions of sensory and motor pathways so that
the brain receives information about what is happening inside our
body and in the outside world. The brain can then control our
response systems.
Neurons
Neurons
Each nervous system is made up of billions of
microscopic cells called neurons which are present in the
human brain from birth. In some texts they are called
neurones.
30,000 neurons could fit on a pin head – so imagine just
how tiny each neuron is.
However, the connections between neurons have to be
created. Each individual connection is called a synapse
and there are millions of synapses in the brain.
Neurons cont
Many neurons in the body are linked together to form
nerves, so a nerve is a ‘bundle’ of neurons. Inside the
brain the linked neurons are called tracts.
Neurons send tiny electrical signals throughout the body
and within the brain.
Some key structures within a neuron are the:
• axon
• dendrite
• synapse
• cell body.
Structure of a Neuron Diagram
Structure of a Neuron Diagram:
Neurotransmitters
Neurotransmitters:
When one neuron
communicates with another
chemical messengers called
neurotransmitters are
released.
These chemicals enable
impulses in the brain to be
transmitted from one part of the
brain to another.
Neurotransmitters are like keys
which fit into locks (receptors)
on the surface of each cell.
When enough connections are
made the second neuron is
activated.
Synapse
Neurotransmitters
cont
An electrical impulse travels down the axon of the first
neuron.
This causes neurotransmitters to be released from the first
synaptic knob (terminal) of the first neuron.
The neurotransmitters cross the synaptic gap (or cleft)
and fit into the receptors on the membrane of the
dendrite of the second neuron.
Together many neurotransmitters can cause an electrical
impulse in the next neuron.
Creating
Networks
Learning a new skill requires concentration and can
be difficult at first, but practice ensures that the
neurons send lots of messages – creating a network in
the brain.
As the neurons connect with each other more dendrites grow
and the synapses become more effective.
The opposite is also true – if brain cells are not used they lose
connections and over time neurons die …… but there’s no
need to panic – you have enough to last your lifetime.
Scientists have found that new neurons can be grown
artificially in the hippocampus which is an exciting research
development.
Mirror Neurons
Mirror Neurons
The person walking in front of you accidentally knocks his
elbow on the door frame and you involuntarily flinch in
sympathy …… why? This reaction has puzzled
neuroscientists for many years – how can we empathise so
immediately and so instinctively with another person?
In 1996 a team of Italian researchers studying neural activity
in monkeys made a fascinating discovery: individual neurons
in the brains of the monkeys fired when the monkeys grabbed
an object and also when the monkeys watched another
monkey grab the same object.
Mirror Neurons
cont
Neuropsychologists then went on to identify these neurons
(mirror neurons) in humans using fMRI (functional magnetic
resonance imaging).
They found that a mirror neuron imitates or mirrors the
behaviour of another neuron as though the mirror neuron itself
was performing the action.
The neuroscientist V S Ramachandran predicted in 2000 that
“mirror neurons will do for psychology what DNA did for
biology: they will provide a unifying framework and help
explain a host of mental abilities that have hitherto remained
mysterious and inaccessible to experiments.”
Activity 1 – Neuron Models
Activity 1 – Neuron Models:
In your brain, and all over your body, there are cells sending information.
This information is important in lots of ways.
The cells respond to messages – called sensory stimuli – that arrive at
your eyes, ears, nose, tongue and skin.
They send this information to the brain where it is used to help you to
see, hear, smell, taste and feel the world.
The brain can work out things from the sensory stimuli, such as how far
away objects you can see are, or what direction a sound is coming from.
Hold together two of the mini neuron models to see how
the neurons in your brain make their connections.
cell body
axon
dendrites
dendrites
synaptic knobs
synaptic cleft
direction of message
The cells that send and receive messages are called
neurons.
They have short finger-like ends, called dendrites, so that they can
receive information from, or send information to, many other neurons.
Although most neurons are very, very small, their central part – the axon is longer than the dendrites. In humans, some neurons have a very long
axon – like in the neurons that run all the way from your back to your toes!
The messages in neurons only travel in one direction – so the dendrites at
one end are for receiving information and the synaptic knobs at the other
end are for passing information on.
The messages that travel along the axon of a neuron are electrical. Like
electric wires, neurons work fastest when they are insulated.
The axon of some neurons is insulated with a fatty layer, which you can
see on the model.
Question 1
Question 1:
Which of the statements below are true and which are false?
statement
neurons are cells
a message can go forwards or backwards
in a neuron
messages inside neurons are electrical
messages sent by neurons travel quickly
most neurons are quite big
true or
false
Question 1 Answer Sheet
Question 1 – Answer Sheet:
statement
true or
false
neurons are cells
true
a message can go forwards or backwards
in a neuron
false
messages inside neurons are electrical
true
messages sent by neurons travel quickly
true
most neurons are quite big
false
Question 2
Question 2:
Label the diagram using these terms:
u cell body
u axon
u dendrite
u synaptic knob
direction of message
u synaptic cleft
Question 2 – Answer
Sheet
Question 2 – Answer Sheet:
cell body
axon
dendrites
dendrites
synaptic knobs
synaptic cleft
direction of message
Activity 2 – Demonstrating one-way
messages in neurons
Activity 2 – Demonstrating one-way messages in neurons:
How do messages travel in the brain?
Set up a small light or desk lamp behind a
screen or just outside the door.
Activity 2 cont
Ask the class to stand up and form a rough line around the edge
of the classroom (it can have kinks in it).
One student needs to be able to see the light, the rest should not be
able to.
Each individual needs to be able to just
reach two other people with their outstretched arms.
Tell them that you will flick the light on
and, later, off again.
When the light goes on, the first person in the line should
touch the fingers of the next person and so on along the
whole line.
Activity 2 cont
When the last person in the line feels the message they say out loud ‘the
light was switched on’.
Repeat the procedure for the light going off.
Before the students move back to their seats, ask them to decide which
hands were their ‘dendrites’ and which were their ‘synaptic knobs’. This is
important because in neurons only one ‘end’ of the cell can pass on the
message (the pre-synaptic membrane of the synaptic knobs), and only one
can receive (the post-synaptic membrane of the dendrites).
The message only works if every student passes on the information, which
is good as it shows the students that each neuron in the nervous system
plays an important part in relaying a message.
The message also takes quite a while to get around the classroom – this is
useful to discuss because each individual’s actual nervous system works
quickly (illustrate with examples of reflexes, such as dropping something
hot).
Activity 2 Extension
Activity 2 – Extension:
Repeat the exercise, but time how long it takes from turning the light
on to the last student speaking. Divide the time by the number of
students – giving the average reaction time.
Ask students to work out where messages must have travelled from and
to in order to make each person’s response.
They could even calculate the actual distance covered and try to work out
a speed of conduction – though consider that the measurement will also
include decision time.
The initial observer:
eyes-brain-arm-fingers
The students in the line:
fingers-arm-brain-arm-fingers
The final student:
fingers-arm-brain-mouth
www.dana.org
“The human brain has mystified people
throughout history. Though it weighs a
mere three pounds and is small enough to
hold in our hands, it is our body’s most vital
organ. Its complex network of 100 billion or
more nerve cells orchestrates every aspect
of our thoughts, perception and behaviour.
More than anything else, our brain defines
who we are.”
The Dana Alliance for Brain Initiatives
www.dana.org
With thanks to
Credits
Dr Julia Russell
Contact
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Material in this presentation
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