HES 095 (General Human Physiology and

Pathophysiology with Family Planning

Lecture)
DENT and PHARMA / Second Year
STUDENT ACTIVITY SHEET
Session # 3

Materials:
Laptop, internet, books, pen and notebook
LESSON TITLE: Introduction to Nervous System
LEARNING OUTCOMES:
Upon completion of this lesson, the student can: References:

1. Expound in molecular level, the physiological Hall, J. E. 1. (2016). Guyton and Hall textbook of
processes of the structures found in specific organ medical physiology (13th edition.).
system Philadelphia, PA: Elsevier.
Herrmann T, Leavitt L, Sharma S. Physiology,
2. Create a schematic diagram of how functions of
Membrane. [Updated 2021 Apr 30]. In:
each structure of the organ system found on one
StatPearls [Internet]. Treasure Island (FL):
region related to the other regions
StatPearls Publishing; 2021 Jan-. Available
3. Determine how each organ system works to from:
maintain homeostasis https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK538211
/
4. Conceptualize the pathological processes that
occur throughout the course of the disease
progression Book: Anatomy and Physiology I (Lumen).
(2021, March 1). Retrieved October 6, 2021,
5. Identify signs and symptoms associated with the from
disease and determine its complications https://bio.libretexts.org/@go/page/34371

Subject Orientation (10 minutes)

The instructor will start the lecture with a prayer and will do a recap of the previous
discussion. A pre-test will also be given to know if the students have read ahead the next
topic.

Main Lesson (50 minutes)

The students will study and read the topics ahead of time
Introduction to the Nervous System

Basic Structure and Function of the Nervous System

The picture you have in your mind of the nervous system probably
includes the brain, the nervous tissue contained within the cranium, and the
spinal cord, the extension of nervous tissue within the vertebral column. That
suggests it is made of two organs—and you may not even think of the spinal
cord as an organ—but the nervous system is a very complex structure.
Within the brain, many different and separate regions are responsible for
many different and separate functions. It is as if the nervous system is
composed of many organs that all look similar and can only be differentiated
using tools such as the microscope or electrophysiology. In comparison, it is
easy to see that the stomach is different than the esophagus or the liver, so
you can imagine the digestive system as a collection of specific organs.

The Central and Peripheral Nervous Systems

The nervous system can be divided into two major regions: the central
and peripheral nervous systems. The central nervous system (CNS) is the brain
and spinal cord, and the peripheral nervous system (PNS) is everything else
(Figure 1). The brain is contained within the cranial cavity of the skull, and the
spinal cord is contained within the vertebral cavity of the vertebral column. It
is a bit of an oversimplification to say that the CNS is what is inside these two
cavities and the peripheral nervous system is outside of them, but that is one
way to start to think about it. In actuality, there are some elements of the
peripheral nervous system that are within the cranial or vertebral cavities.
The peripheral nervous system is so named because it is on the
periphery—meaning beyond the brain and spinal cord. Depending on
different aspects of the nervous system, the dividing line between central
and peripheral is not necessarily universal.
 Nervous tissue, present in both the CNS and PNS, contains two basic types of cells:
neurons and glial cells. A glial cell is one of a variety of cells that provide a framework of
tissue that supports the neurons and their activities. The neuron is the more functionally
important of the two, in terms of the communicative function of the nervous system.

In order to describe the functional divisions of the nervous system, it is important to

understand the structure of a neuron. Neurons are cells and therefore have a soma, or cell
body, but they also have extensions of the cell; each extension is generally referred to as a
process. There is one important process that every neuron has called an axon, which is the
fiber that connects a neuron with its target. Another type of process that branches off from
the soma is the dendrite. Dendrites are responsible for receiving most of the input from
other neurons.

Looking at nervous tissue, there are regions that predominantly contain cell bodies
and regions that are largely composed of just axons. These two regions within nervous
system structures are often referred to as gray matter (the regions with many cell bodies
and dendrites) or white matter (the regions with many axons). Figure 2 demonstrates the
appearance of these regions in the brain and spinal cord. The colors ascribed to these
regions are what would be seen in “fresh,” or unstained, nervous tissue. Gray matter is not
necessarily gray. It can be pinkish because of blood content, or even slightly tan, depending
on how long the tissue has been preserved. But white matter is white because axons are
insulated by a lipid-rich substance called myelin. Lipids can appear as white (“fatty”)
material, much like the fat on a raw piece of chicken or beef. Actually, gray matter may
have that color ascribed to it because next to the white matter, it is just darker—hence,
gray.
 The distinction between gray matter and white matter is most often applied to
central nervous tissue, which has large regions that can be seen with the unaided eye.
When looking at peripheral structures, often a microscope is used and the tissue is stained
with artificial colors. That is not to say that central nervous tissue cannot be stained and
viewed under a microscope, but unstained tissue is most likely from the CNS—for example,
a frontal section of the brain or cross section of the spinal cord.

Regardless of the appearance of stained or unstained tissue, the cell bodies of neurons or
axons can be located in discrete anatomical structures that need to be named. Those
names are specific to whether the structure is central or peripheral. A localized collection of
neuron cell bodies in the CNS is referred to as a nucleus. In the PNS, a cluster of neuron cell
bodies is referred to as a ganglion. Figure 3 indicates how the term nucleus has a few
different meanings within anatomy and physiology. It is the center of an atom, where
protons and neutrons are found; it is the center of a cell, where the DNA is found; and it is
a center of some function in the CNS. There is also a potentially confusing use of the word
ganglion (plural = ganglia) that has a historical explanation. In the central nervous system,
there is a group of nuclei that are connected together and were once called the basal
ganglia before “ganglion” became accepted as a description for a peripheral structure.
Some sources refer to this group of nuclei as the “basal nuclei” to avoid confusion.
Terminology applied to bundles of axons also differs depending on location. A bundle of
axons, or fibers, found in the CNS is called a tract whereas the same thing in the PNS would
be called a nerve. There is an important point to make about these terms, which is that
they can both be used to refer to the same bundle of axons. When those axons are in the
PNS, the term is nerve, but if they are CNS, the term is tract. The most obvious example of
this is the axons that project from the retina into the brain. Those axons are called the optic
nerve as they leave the eye, but when they are inside the cranium, they are referred to as
the optic tract. There is a specific place where the name changes, which is the optic chiasm,
but they are still the same axons (Figure 4).

A similar situation outside of science

can be described for some roads.
Imagine a road called “Broad Street” in
a town called “Anyville.” The road
leaves Anyville and goes to the next
town over, called “Hometown.” When
the road crosses the line between the
two towns and is in Hometown, its
name changes to “Main Street.” That is
the idea behind the naming of the
retinal axons. In the PNS, they are
called the optic nerve, and in the CNS,
they are the optic tract. Table 1 helps to
clarify which of these terms apply to
the central or peripheral nervous
systems.

Functional Divisions of the Nervous System

- The nervous system can also be divided on the basis of its functions, but anatomical
divisions and functional divisions are different. The CNS and the PNS both
contribute to the same functions, but those functions can be attributed to different
regions of the brain (such as the cerebral cortex or the hypothalamus) or to
different ganglia in the periphery. The problem with trying to fit functional
differences into anatomical divisions is that sometimes the same structure can be
part of several functions. For example, the optic nerve carries signals from the retina
 that are either used for the conscious perception of visual stimuli, which takes place
in the cerebral cortex, or for the reflexive responses of smooth muscle tissue that
are processed through the hypothalamus.
- There are two ways to consider how the nervous system is divided functionally. First,
the basic functions of the nervous system are sensation, integration, and response.
Secondly, control of the body can be somatic or autonomic—divisions that are
largely defined by the structures that are involved in the response. There is also a
region of the peripheral nervous system that is called the enteric nervous system
that is responsible for a specific set of the functions within the realm of autonomic
control related to gastrointestinal functions.

Basic Functions
✔ The nervous system is involved in receiving information about the environment
around us (sensation) and generating responses to that information (motor
responses). The nervous system can be divided into regions that are responsible for
sensation (sensory functions) and for the response (motor functions). But there is a
third function that needs to be included. Sensory input needs to be integrated with
other sensations, as well as with memories, emotional state, or learning (cognition).
Some regions of the nervous system are termed integration or association areas. The
process of integration combines sensory perceptions and higher cognitive functions
such as memories, learning, and emotion to produce a response.
o Sensation
▪ The first major function of the nervous system is sensation—receiving
information about the environment to gain input about what is
happening outside the body (or, sometimes, within the body). The
sensory functions of the nervous system register the presence of a
change from homeostasis or a particular event in the environment,
known as a stimulus.
▪ The senses we think of most are the “big five”: taste, smell, touch,
sight, and hearing. The stimuli for taste and smell are both chemical
substances (molecules, compounds, ions, etc.), touch is physical or
mechanical stimuli that interact with the skin, sight is light stimuli, and
hearing is the perception of sound, which is a physical stimulus similar
to some aspects of touch. There are actually more senses than just
those, but that list represents the major senses. Those five are all
senses that receive stimuli from the outside world, and of which there
is conscious perception. Additional sensory stimuli might be from the
internal environment (inside the body), such as the stretch of an
organ wall or the concentration of certain ions in the blood.
o Response
▪ The nervous system produces a response on the basis of the stimuli
perceived by sensory structures. An obvious response would be the
movement of muscles, such as withdrawing a hand from a hot stove,
 but there are broader uses of the term. The nervous system can cause
the contraction of all three types of muscle tissue. For example,
skeletal muscle contracts to move the skeleton, cardiac muscle is
influenced as heart rate increases during exercise, and smooth
muscle contracts as the digestive system moves food along the
digestive tract. Responses also include the neural control of glands in
the body as well, such as the production and secretion of sweat by the
eccrine and merocrine sweat glands found in the skin to lower body
temperature.
▪ Responses can be divided into those that are voluntary or conscious
(contraction of skeletal muscle) and those that are involuntary
(contraction of smooth muscles, regulation of cardiac muscle,
activation of glands). Voluntary responses are governed by the
somatic nervous system and involuntary responses are governed by
the autonomic nervous system, which are discussed in the next
section.
o Integration
▪ Stimuli that are received by sensory structures are communicated to
the nervous system where that information is processed. This is called
integration. Stimuli are compared with, or integrated with, other
stimuli, memories of previous stimuli, or the state of a person at a
particular time. This leads to the specific response that will be
generated. Seeing a baseball pitched to a batter will not automatically
cause the batter to swing. The trajectory of the ball and its speed will
need to be considered. Maybe the count is three balls and one strike,
and the batter wants to let this pitch go by in the hope of getting a
walk to first base. Or maybe the batter’s team is so far ahead, it would
be fun to just swing away.
✔ Controlling the Body
o The nervous system can be divided into two parts mostly on the basis of a
functional difference in responses. The somatic nervous system (SNS) is
responsible for conscious perception and voluntary motor responses.
Voluntary motor response means the contraction of skeletal muscle, but
those contractions are not always voluntary in the sense that you have to
want to perform them. Some somatic motor responses are reflexes, and
often happen without a conscious decision to perform them. If your friend
jumps out from behind a corner and yells “Boo!” you will be startled and you
might scream or leap back. You didn’t decide to do that, and you may not
have wanted to give your friend a reason to laugh at your expense, but it is a
reflex involving skeletal muscle contractions. Other motor responses become
automatic (in other words, unconscious) as a person learns motor skills
(referred to as “habit learning” or “procedural memory”).
o The autonomic nervous system (ANS) is responsible for involuntary control of
the body, usually for the sake of homeostasis (regulation of the internal
environment). Sensory input for autonomic functions can be from sensory
structures tuned to external or internal environmental stimuli. The motor
output extends to smooth and cardiac muscle as well as glandular tissue. The
role of the autonomic system is to regulate the organ systems of the body,
which usually means to control homeostasis. Sweat glands, for example, are
controlled by the autonomic system. When you are hot, sweating helps cool
your body down. That is a homeostatic mechanism. But when you are
nervous, you might start sweating also. That is not homeostatic, it is the
physiological response to an emotional state.
o There is another division of the nervous system that describes functional
responses. The enteric nervous system (ENS) is responsible for controlling
the smooth muscle and glandular tissue in your digestive system. It is a large
part of the PNS, and is not dependent on the CNS. It is sometimes valid,
however, to consider the enteric system to be a part of the autonomic
system because the neural structures that make up the enteric system are a
component of the autonomic output that regulates digestion. There are
some differences between the two, but for our purposes here there will be a
good bit of overlap. See Figure 5 for examples of where these divisions of the
nervous system can be found.
Check for Understanding (45 minutes)
Students will answer these questions and will rationalize this. Teacher will then confirm if
answers are correct and synchronously rationalize with the students. Students will be given
45 minutes to answer the activity sheet.

1. Which of the following cavities contains a component of the central nervous system?
a. Abdominal
b. Cranial
c. Thoracic
d. Pelvis
2. Which structure predominates in the white matter of the brain?
a. Myelinated Axons
b. Neuronal cell bodies
c. Ganglia of the parasympathetic nerves
d. Bundles of dendrites from the enteric system
3. Which part of a neuron transmits an electrical signal to a target cell?
a. Dendrites
b. Soma
c. Cell Body
d. Axon
4. Which term describes a bundle of axons in the peripheral nervous system?
a. Nucleus
b. Ganglion
c. Tract
d. Nerve
5. Which functional division of the nervous system would be responsible for the physiological
changes seen during exercise (e.g., increased heart rate and sweating)?
a. Somatic
b. Autonomic
c. Enteric
d. Central