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Nerve impulses are extremely slow compared to the speed of electricity, where the electric field can propagate with a speed on the order of 50–99% of the speed of light; however, it is very fast compared to the speed of blood flow, with some myelinated neurons conducting at speeds up to 120 m/s (432 km/h or 275 mph) [citation needed].
An action potential (or nerve impulse) is a transient alteration of the transmembrane voltage (or membrane potential) across the membrane in an excitable cell generated by the activity of voltage-gated ion channels embedded in the membrane. The best known action potentials are pulse-like waves that travel along the axons of neurons.
Efferent nerve fibers carry motor nerve signals from the anterior horn to the muscles Effector muscle innervated by the efferent nerve fiber carries out the response. A reflex arc, then, is the pathway followed by nerves which (a.) carry sensory information from the receptor to the spinal cord, and then (b.) carry the response generated by the ...
As an action potential (nerve impulse) travels down an axon there is a change in electric polarity across the membrane of the axon. In response to a signal from another neuron, sodium- (Na +) and potassium- (K +)–gated ion channels open and close as the membrane reaches its threshold potential.
As an example, earthworms have dual nerve cords running along the length of the body and merging at the tail and the mouth. These nerve cords are connected by transverse nerves like the rungs of a ladder. These transverse nerves help coordinate the two sides of the animal. Two ganglia at the head (the "nerve ring") end function similar to a ...
The axon reflex was discovered by Kovalevskiy and Sokovnin, two Russian scientists in 1873. [5] They described the axon reflex as a new type of peripheral (or local) reflex where electrical signal starts in the middle of the axon and transmit immediately skipping both an integration center and a chemical synapse as typically observed in the spinal cord reflex.
A nerve impulse causes Na + to enter the cell, resulting in (b) depolarization. At the peak action potential, K + channels open and the cell becomes (c) hyperpolarized. Voltage gated ion channels respond to changes in the membrane potential. Voltage gated potassium, chloride and sodium channels are key components in the generation of the action ...
Neurons form networks through which nerve impulses travels, each neuron often making numerous connections with other cells of neurons. These electrical signals may be excitatory or inhibitory, and, if the total of excitatory influences exceeds that of the inhibitory influences, the neuron will generate a new action potential at its axon hillock ...