Nervous Tissue

Nervous tissue consists of two kinds of nerve cells:
 
  • Neurons are the basic structural unit of the nervous system. Each cell consists of the following parts (see Figure 1):
        • The cell body contains the nucleus and other cellular organelles.
        • The dendrites are typically short, slender extensions of the cell body that receive stimuli.
        • The axon is typically a long, slender extension of the cell body that sends stimuli.
        • The axon branches are, typically, smaller extensions of the axon.
  • Neuroglia, or glial cells, provide support functions for the neurons, such as insulation or anchoring neurons to blood vessels.
Figure 1. A neuron is a basic structural unit of the nervous system containing a cell body, dendrites, and an axon.

figure

 
 
 
 
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