Gambaran Umum Sistem Saraf

Department of Physiology
School of Medicine
University of Sumatera Utara

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 Organization of the Nervous System
The nervous system is responsible
for most of the functions that
characterize higher organisms.

In humans, it is the source of

conscious awareness, sensation,
voluntary movement, thought,
memory and learning, prediction,
emotion, and other forms of
cognitive behavior.

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 Organization of the Nervous System
The nervous system is a
communications network that
allows an organism to interact in
appropriate ways with the
environment.

This system has sensory

components that detect
environmental events, integrative
components that process sensory
data and information that is
stored in memory, and motor
components that generate
movements and other activity

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 Organization of the Nervous System
• The nervous system consists of a
highly complex aggregation of
cells, part of which is a
communication network and
another part a supportive
matrix.
• The communication network is
formed by neurons, which are
the functional cellular units of
the nervous system.
• The human brain contains
approximately 1012 neurons.

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 Organization of the Nervous System
• Neurons are specialized for
receiving information, making
decisions, and transmitting signals
to other neurons or to effector cells
such as muscle or gland cells.

• This specialization depends on

different types of extensions of the
cell body, or soma, of a neuron.

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 Organization of the Nervous System
Most neurons have several
dendrites and an axon.
Different types of neurons
have consistent forms that
relate to their functional
properties

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 The dendrites receive contacts called
synapses from other neurons, and the axon
forms synapses with other neurons or effector
cells.

Information is transmitted in a neuron by

conduction of an electrical signal, the nerve
impulse or action potential from the soma
and dendritic region, along the axon to the
synaptic ending.

A chemical neurotransmitter is then released

and signals information to the next cell.
Synaptic transmission can have an excitatory
or an inhibitory effect

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 The supportive cells
of the nervous
system include the
neuroglia ("nerve
Fibrous Astrocyte Protoplasmic Astrocyte glue"). The human
brain has 10 times as
many neuroglia as
neurons
Microglial cell
Oligodendrocytes

Ependymal cells

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 • Some neuroglia, called
astrocytes because of their star-
shaped appearance in stained
histological sections, help
maintain an appropriate local
environment for neurons.

• Others, named oligodendroglia

because they have a limited
number of processes,
ensheathe axons to increase
the speed of propagation of
nerve impulses.

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 • Microglia are phagocytes that
remove the products of cellular
damage from the central
nervous system. They are
probably derived from the
circulation.
• Ependymal cells form an
epithelium that separates the
CNS from the ventricles, a series
of cavities within the brain;
these cavities contain
cerebrospinal fluid (CSF).
• The nervous system is also richly
supplied with blood vessels.

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 Organization of the Nervous System
• The nervous system can be
divided into a peripheral
nervous system (PNS) and a
central nervous system (CNS)

• The peripheral nervous system

is an interface between the
central nervous system and
the environment

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 • The PNS provides an interface
between the CNS and the
environment, including both the
external world and the body
apart from the nervous system.

• The PNS includes sensory and

motor components.

• The sensory component detects

environmental signals and is
formed by sensory receptor
organs and primary afferent
neurons

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 • Motor components command
effector organs to perform
muscular or glandular activity
and include the axons of
somatic motor neurons as well
as autonomic preganglionic
and postganglionic neurons
and their axons.

• Autonomic neurons can be

further subdivided into
sympathetic, parasympathetic,
and enteric neurons

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 • Somatic motor axons cause contractions
of skeletal muscle fibers. Autonomic
motor axons excite or inhibit cardiac
muscle, smooth muscle, or glands.

• The sympathetic nervous system prepares

the organism for emergency action,
whereas the parasympathetic nervous
system promotes more routine activities
such as digestion.

• Ordinarily the sympathetic and

parasympathetic nervous systems work
together in regulating visceral function

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