What is interneuron?

interneurone, also known as an associated neuron, is a neuron or nervous cell, located exclusively in the central nervous system, which performs signals among other nerve cells. The central nervous system (CNS) consists of nerve cells in the brain and spinal cord, unlike the peripheral nervous system, which is the whole system that lies outside these areas. Interneurone acts as a "middle man" between afferent or sensory neurons that receive signals from the peripheral nervous system and eperential or motor neurons that transmit signals from the brain. It also associates with other interneurons, allowing them to communicate with each other.

Neuron is a type of cells specialized in the reception and transmission of nerve pulses. It has two types of extensions that address from the main body or soma. Dendrits are branched projections that usually receive information through electrochemical signals from axon of another neuron; C.A also sends certain types of signals. Axon is another, more cable, longé extension from Soma, which converts information from the cellular body. All nerve cells have one axon, cellular body and one or more dendrites.

interneurons are multipolar nerve cells, which means they have more than one dendritity. Although they are in the brain, each is limited to a specific area: do not connect different parts of the brain together. They come in much larger number of forms than afferent or efferent nerve cells, but since 2013 there is no standard method of their classification to types.

How neurons work

signals brought to the central nervous system through afferent neurons transmit information about feelings that occur on the body or inside, such as visual and auditory stimuli, pressure and pain. Effect of neurons, on the contrary, send the central nervous system to the body. For example, if a person touches the hot stoves the handU, afferent nerve cells transfer sensory impulses to the central nervous system and register pain. After processing the pulse, the central nervous system sends a message back to the body through the eperential nerve cells to move by hand.

nerve pulse occurs when the sensory receptor causes a normal negative electric charge or resting potential to become positive. This change in charge is called depolarization . If depolarization reaches a certain level, action potential is created. This travels along the nerve cell to the synapse or the gap between the end of the axon and the dendritus of another cell. The positive charge at the end of the axon causes a number of reactions that allow the chemicals of the "messenger" called neurotransmitters to enter the synapse and bind to receptors to the neighboring neuron dendritit. If this nerve cell Ije interneuron will have to decide what to do with the information received.

This kind of signal is called excitative because it causes receiverThe nerve cell generates impulse. This usually includes chemicals called glutamates. The opposite type of signal is called inhibitory because it acts to suppress the pulse by generating a negative electric charge in the receiving nerve. These signals generally include a neurotransmitter gamma-amino-butyrovy acid (GABA). The behavior of interneurons is most often inhibitory.

role of interneurons

This type of nerve cell can be stimulated by an eperential or afferent neuron or other interneurone. It can receive information from the external or internal environment of the body and pass it to the brain for further processing, or can process the information itself and send the signal to the motor neuron to act. In the latter case, it is considered to be an integration center or a place in the center of the nervous system where information from the environment is processed and decisions on how to react.

in the previous example that someone touches hot stoves, interneuron processes information from the sensory nerve cell itselfand allows the signal to pass on to a motor neuron to take steps. This is called the backbone reflex. However, other signals may require higher brain analysis and are sent from afferent neurons to one or more interneurons that pass through the impulse along the brain. In this case, the brain is considered an integration center.

Since 2013, different functions of interneurons have been active research and have to learn. Inhibitory signals they produce can serve to modulate electrical stimuli between afferent and eperential nerve cells, but they also seem to play many other basic roles. It seems that large assemblies of different types of these nerve cells interact with complex ways that are important for higher bra features such as memory, perception and emotions.