Olfactory receptor neuron

lzheimer's is the progressive mental deterioration that can occur in middle or old age, due to generalized degeneration of the brain. There is a lot of discussion in the eldercare community these days regarding Alzheimer's. With the advancements in medical technology, people are living longer than in past generations. It seems like a lot of folks may be able to physically get around better, but have more challenges with mental health issues such as Alzheimer's. According to WebMD, the biggest…

Have you ever wondered how the brain works or how it is connected? Outside the brain there appears to be a handful of pink and gray muscles. However, as you enter the human brain, it reveals an extremely complex circuit, connecting you with the rest of your body. The brain contains almost 100,000 miles of blood vessels and billions of cells. It is the consummate library of information, remembering data and processing it as quickly as 11 million bits per second (The Human Brain). The brain is a…

The basal ganglia plays a vital role in the way movement happens and when dopamine does not follow the path that it is suppose to, it hinders body movement. Parkinson’s disease is often known as PD and it is a progressive neurological condition, which means the sickness and symptoms get more severe as time goes on (Noble, 2007). Out of all the neurodegenerative disorders, PD is the second most common one (Noble, 2007). It happens amongst 1% of the population older than sixty years. (Samii, 2004)…

Susan’s main areas of difficulty involve motor speech, which affects her intelligibility. Particularly relating to the larynx, use of the tongue in speech and coordination of the lips and palate. This indicates that Susan is likely experiencing mixed spastic-ataxic dysarthria due to lesions on the upper motor neurone pathway (Wilkinson and Lennox 2005) in the corticobulbar tract which innervates the cranial nerves and the cerebellum (Bethoux et al 2013). Lesions on the upper motor neurone…

Ankylosing spondylitis (AS), or Bechterew’s disease, is an inflammatory disease that can cause the vertebrae in the spine to fuse together. The fusing that takes place will make the spine less flexible and can lead to a curvature of the spine culminating in a stood posture. This disease predominantly affects males in their teens 20s, and is less common in women. Early signs and symptoms of ankylosing spondylitis may include pain and stiffness in the neck, lower back, and hips. These signs and…

Multiple sclerosis (MS) is an idiopathic autoimmune disorder that affects the nervous system. MS results from progressive demyelination of the white matter of the brain and spinal chord. Multiple sclerosis affects the nervous system by damaging the nerve cell’s myelin, a process known as demyelination. Multiple sclerosis causes scattered demyelinated lesions causing neurologic dysfunction. The myelin is a lipoprotein complex formed of glial cells. The primary functions of the axonal myelin are…

Explanation of EMG signals EMG stands for electromyography. Muscle fibres generate tiny electrical currents prior to the production of muscle force. These currents are generated by the exchange of ions across muscle fibres membranes, a part of the signalling process for the muscle fibres to contract. EMG is the signal made, it can be measured by applying conductive elements or electrodes to the skin surface, or invasively with the muscle. When using EMG, tiny devices named electrodes are used…

somatosensory/motor cortex another job. Due to this event the brain will get confused when new signals arrive and might translate as the phantom limb being in pain. While for the spinal cord its believe that once the surgery occurs an abundance of receptors are created which are responsible for pain. Treating this phenomenon has proven to be quite difficult. Typically it followed the analgesic ladder. (Increase pain = increase opioids) However, interestingly another treatment has provided with…

Nerve cell degeneration that occurs in AD (as shown in Figs. 4 & 5) reflects in a great way symptoms that the individual experiences. Typically, nerves degeneration occurs first in the brain area responsible for learning and memory, and gradually spreads to cells controlling other aspects such as thinking, judgment and behavior. Eventually, damage reaches nerve cells that control and coordinates movement. Figure 4 Brain from normal elderly person (upper left and right)vs. brain of…

Sensation and perception work together to help the brain make sense of the world we see. There cells, called sensory receptors, are the ones that send stimulus to the brain through afferent nerves, which are responsible for carrying information to the brain and spinal cord. This process is called the bottom-up processing, and it means that the information is being sent to the brain for interpretation. Then there is top-down processing, which works opposite of bottom-up processing. To make sense…