Nerve Conduction and Synaptic Transmission

Vocabulary flashcards covering myelinated and unmyelinated nerves, continuous versus saltatory conduction, and the mechanisms of synaptic transmission.

Unmyelinated nerves

Also known as gray nerves, these conduct signals relatively slowly and exist within sensory nerves.

Myelinated nerves

Nerves found in the central nervous system and motor nerves that conduct electrical signals very fast.

Sensory nerves

Relatively slow nerves that carry information into the central nervous system through continuous conduction.

Motor nerves

Fast-conducting nerves that utilize saltatory conduction in myelinated fibers.

Saltatory conduction

A process where an electrical signal jumps from one node of brambier to the next, resulting in very fast transmission.

Node of brambier

The specific structures along a nerve between which an electrical signal jumps during saltatory conduction.

Synapse

The site where an electrical signal is converted into a chemical signal to transmit information from one nerve to the next.

Voltage gated calcium channels

Channels located at the synaptic terminal that open when an electrical signal arrives, allowing calcium to flush into the axon terminal.

Acetylcholine

A chemical released into the synapse following calcium influx into the axon terminal, which activates the dendrite of the adjacent nerve.