Related topics: nerve cells · brain · neurons · cells · central nervous system

Walking on the move: New insights into the neurology of locomotion

In a new study, scientists from the University of Cologne gained new insights into the mechanism of the rhythmic activation of nerve cells (neurons) in stick insects that control the leg muscles during walking. The researchers ...

A new way to visualize brain cancer at the nanoscale level

Researchers from Brigham and Women's Hospital and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) have unveiled unprecedentedly detailed images of brain cancer tissue through the use of a new microscopy technology called ...

Cellular scaffolding rewired to make microscopic railways

Princeton researchers have learned to harness the gossamer scaffolding that maintains the structure of living cells and used it to develop a nanotechnology platform. The technique eventually could lead to advances in soft ...

Brittle stars can learn just fine, even without a brain

We humans are fixated on big brains as a proxy for smarts. But headless animals called brittle stars have no brains at all and still manage to learn through experience, new research reveals.

Bacteria found to contribute to the modulation of animal behavior

An increasingly important field of work in modern life sciences is the study of the symbiotic coexistence of animals, plants, and humans with their specific microbial populations. In recent years, researchers have gathered ...

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Nervous system

The nervous system is a network of specialized cells that communicate information about an organism's surroundings and itself. It processes this information and causes reactions in other parts of the body. It is composed of neurons and other specialized cells called glial cells,(plural form glia), that aid in the function of the neurons. The nervous system is divided broadly into two categories: the peripheral nervous system and the central nervous system. Neurons generate and conduct impulses between and within the two systems. The peripheral nervous system is composed of sensory neurons and the neurons that connect them to the nerve cord, spinal cord and brain, which make up the central nervous system. In response to stimuli, sensory neurons generate and propagate signals to the central nervous system which then processes and conducts signals back to the muscles and glands. The neurons of the nervous systems of animals are interconnected in complex arrangements and use electrochemical signals and neurotransmitters to transmit impulses from one neuron to the next. The interaction of the different neurons form neural circuits regulate an organism's perception of the world and what is going on with its body, thus regulating its behavior. Nervous systems are found in many multicellular animals but differ greatly in complexity between species.

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