Month: October 2018

Neuron Communication Lesson

katiat2016

Neuron Structure

there are 3 different types of neurons the motor neuron, sensory neuron, and the interneuron.

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All neurons are made of dendrites which receive information from other neurons and transmit them to the cell body, the cell body also known as the soma that receives messages from the dendrites and provides life functions, and the axon which carries neurons away from the cell body and to other neurons and muscles.

The motor neuron contains the 3 parts previously listed and the terminal buttons which are responsible for sending signals on to other neurons, the myelin sheath that converse the axon of some neurons and helps speed up neural impulse, and the action potential which is the signal that travels down the axon.

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Neuron Functions 

A neuron is a electrically excitable cells that transmits information through electrical and chemical signals, they are the fundamental units of the brain and nervous system. Impulses that are sent along the neuron are called action potential, the action potential is the electrical current that travels along the axon when a neuron has been stimulated. The key to neural function is the synaptic signaling process, it is partly electrical and partly chemical. Once the electrical signal reaches the synapse, a neurotransmitter is released by the neuron. This neurotransmitter will stimulate the second neuron, triggering a new wave of electrical impulse, repeating the same mechanism described above.

Synapse Structure 

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Synapse Function

The synapse is the point of communication between 2 neurons or a neuron and target cell, like a muscle or gland. At the synapse, the firing of an action potential in one neuron (the presynaptic) causes the transmission of a signal to another neuron (the postsynaptic) making the postsynaptic neuron either more or less likely to fire its own action potential.

When the action potential reaches the axon terminal the AP causes synaptic vesicles to release neurotransmitters into the synaptic gap, the neurotransmitters diffuse through the gap and bind to the receptors on the receiving end.

 

Citations: 

Google Search, Google, www.google.ca/search?rlz=1C1CHBH_enCA764CA764&biw=1368&bih=802&tbm=isch&sa=1&ei=etDEW5K2B_Lg9AP4_oC4BQ&q=neuron structure and function&oq=neuron structure &gs_l=img.1.0.0l10.715337.718744.0.721048.20.14.1.5.5.0.92.863.14.14.0….0…1c.1.64.img..0.20.894…0i67k1j0i10i24k1.0.TOVypLAdWIE#imgrc=7qpNMbGpJOE30M:

“The Synapse.” Khan Academy, Khan Academy, www.khanacademy.org/science/biology/human-biology/neuron-nervous-system/a/the-synapse.

“Synapse Structure.” Google Search, Google, www.google.ca/search?q=synapse structure&rlz=1C1CHBH_enCA764CA764&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwjU6JTPhYneAhUxGzQIHdPnAL4Q_AUIDigB&biw=1368&bih=802#imgrc=0kLOauxXVNelqM:

 

Charles Darwin

katiat2016

how did the discovery of DNA prove that Darwin’s theory of evolution was correct and how does it change the way we view evolution today and into the future?

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Charles Darwin was a biologist who visited the Galapagos islands in 1835 during his travels he encountered many fascinating organisms and during expeditions he collected the bodies of multiple birds. While he was going home he discovered that all the birds(finch’s) were the same species even though they didn’t look alike.

Darwin’s first study was with dogs breeders and focused on the idea of specific traits being passed down based on human interactions. he believed that the small adaptations that happened in the finch from the different Galapagos islands was the cause of adaptation. He believed that those small differences allowed for the fit to get fitter and for the unfit to slowly die off which overtime lead to much bigger differences. He believed the birds had these different characteristics because they adapted to their environment depending on which of the islands they resided, they used their beaks as tools and the long beaks were used to go deep into flowers and short beaks were for breaking hard nuts. This proves his theory of evolution by natural selection and instead of human interactions passing down traits like with dogs it was natures interactions that affected the species and allowed them to evolve over time.

Natural selection is another place to explore in the medical field it gives us a chance to discover the cause of diseases and the chance of finding a cure. In the movie What Darwin never knew that we watched in class, they spoke about finding a cure for microscelepathy. Microcelepathy is a disease where the human brain is the same size as a chimps and this is because of 1 of the 21 different mutations. They have yet to find a cure but using Darwin’s theory has helped them a lot, natural selection has opened many doors for scientists and our future and is evolving all thanks to Darwin’s early discoveries. Now with the discovery of DNA we could test and prove Darwin’s theory easily.