CHAPTER 2

NEUROLOGICAL CONTROL OF MOVEMENT

Prof. Jack Wilmore

The Nervous System

Two major control systems
Neural - quick acting, short lived Hormonal - slow acting, long lived

Major purposes of the nervous system

Means of communication Link to inside and outside environment sensory receptors Activator of movement motor response

Overview of the Nervous System

Central Nervous System
Brain and Spinal Cord

Peripheral Nervous System Sensory Division Motor Division

Autonomic
Sympathetic

Somatic

Parasympathetic

THE STRUCTURE OF A NEURON

Nerve Impulse
An electrical charge that travels the length of the axon and passes from one neuron to the next and/or to an end organ, such as a group of muscle fibers.

Resting Membrane Potential (RMP)

w Difference between the electrical charges inside and outside a cell, caused by separation of charges across a membrane to maintain a negative charge inside the cell w High concentration of K+ inside the neuron and Na+ outside the neuron w K+ ions can move freely, even outside the cell to help maintain imbalance w Sodium-potassium pump actively transports 3 Na+ out of the cell for every 2 K+ into the cell to maintain imbalance w The constant imbalance keeps the RMP at 70mV inside the cell

Changes in Membrane Potential

Depolarizationinside of cell becomes less negative relative to outside (> 70 mV, e.g. 55 mV) Hyperpolarizationinside of cell becomes more negative relative to outside (< 70 mV, e.g. 80 mV, less responsive) Graded potentialslocalized changes in membrane potential (either depolarization or hyperpolarization) Action potentialsrapid, substantial depolarization of the membrane (70 mV to +30 mV to 70 mV all in 1 ms). Results from a graded potential of at least 15 to 20 mV, depolarizing the RMP to 50 to 55 mV.

What Is an Action Potential?

w Starts as a graded potential w Requires depolarization greater than the threshold value of 15 mV to 20 mV, e.g.,from 70 down to -50 to 55 mV w Once threshold is met or exceeded, the all-or-none principle applies

RESTING STATE

AN ACTION POTENTIAL

Refractory Period
w Period of repolarization. w The muscle fiber is unable to respond to any further stimulation. w The refractory period limits a motor unit's firing frequency.

Events During an Action Potential

1. The resting state 2. Depolarization 3. Propagation of an action potential 4. Repolarization 5. Return to the resting state with the help of the sodiumpotassium pump

The Velocity of an Action Potential

Myelinated fibers w Saltatory conductionaction potential travels quickly from one break in myelin (i.e., Nodes of Ranvier), to the next. w Action potential is 5 to 50 times faster in myelinated compared to unmyelinated axons. Diameter of the neuron w Larger diameter neurons conduct nerve impulses faster w Larger diameter neurons present less resistance to current flow (remember FT muscle fibers!)

THE STRUCTURE OF A NEURON

Key Points
The Nerve Impulse
w w

A neuron's RMP of 70 mV is maintained by the sodium-potassium pump. Changes in membrane potential occur when ion gates in the membrane open, permitting ions to move from one side to the other. If the membrane potential depolarizes by 15 mV to 20 mV the threshold is reached, resulting in an action potential.
(continued)

Key Points
The Nerve Impulse
w w

Impulses travel faster in myelinated axons and in neurons with larger diameters. Saltatory conduction refers to an impulse traveling along a myelinated fiber by jumping from one node of Ranvier to the next.

The Synapse
w A synapse is the site of an impulse transmission between two neurons. w An impulse travels to a presynaptic axon terminal where it causes synaptic vesicles on the terminal to release chemicals (neurotransmitters) into the synaptic cleft. w The neurotransmitters bind to postsynaptic receptors on an adjacent neuron usually on the dendrites (80-95%). Neural impulses can only be transmitted from the dendrite and/or cell body through the axon to the adjacent neuron since the neurotransmitters are released only from the terminal end of the axon.

THE CHEMICAL SYNAPSE

The Neuromuscular Junction

w The junction is a site where a motor neuron communicates with a muscle fiber. w Motor axon terminal releases neurotransmitters (such as acetylcholine) to receptors on a muscle fiber. w This binding causes depolarization, thus possibly causing an action potential, providing sufficient ACh is released. w The action potential spreads across the sarcolemma causing the muscle fiber to contract.

THE NEUROMUSCULAR JUNCTION

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Key Points
Synapses
w

Neurons communicate with one another by releasing neurotransmitters across synapses. Synapses involve a presynaptic axon terminal, a postsynaptic receptor, neurotransmitters, and the space between them.

Neurotransmitters bind to the receptors and cause depolarization (excitation) or hyperpolarization (inhibition) depending on the specific neurotransmitter and the site to which it binds.

Key Points
The Postsynaptic Response
w

Binding of a neurotransmitter causes a graded action potential in the postsynaptic membrane. excitatory impulse causes hypopolarization or depolarization. inhibitory impulse causes hyperpolarization.

w An w An w

The axon hillock keeps a running total of the neuron's responses to incoming impulses. of impulses is necessary to generate an action potential.

w A summation

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Key Points
Neuromuscular Junctions
w

Neurons communicate with muscle cells at neuromuscular junctions, which function much like a neural synapse. The refractory period is the time it takes the muscle fiber to repolarize before the fiber can respond to another stimulus. and norepinephrine are the neurotransmitters most important in regulating exercise.

w Acetylcholine

Key Points
The Peripheral Nervous System
w

The peripheral nervous system contains 43 pairs of nerves and is divided into sensory and motor divisions. The sensory division carries information from the sensory receptors to the CNS. The motor division includes the autonomic nervous system. The motor division carries impulses from the CNS to the muscles or target organs.
(continued)

w w w

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Key Points
The Peripheral Nervous System
w

The autonomic nervous system includes the sympathetic and parasympathetic nervous systems. The sympathetic nervous system prepares the body for an acute response. The parasympathetic nervous system carries out processes such as digestion and urination. The sympathetic and parasympathetic systems are opposing systems that function together.

w w

Sympathetic Nervous System

Fight-or-flightprepares you for acute stress or physical activity Facilitates your response with increases in w Heart rate and strength of heart contraction w Blood supply to the heart and active muscles w Metabolic rate and release of glucose by the liver w Blood pressure

w Rate of gas exchange between lungs and blood

w Mental activity and quickness of response

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Parasympathetic Nervous System

Housekeepingdigestion, urination, glandular secretion, and energy conservation Actions oppose those of the sympathetic system w Decreases heart rate w Constricts coronary vessels w Constricts tissues in the lungs

Integration Centers
Spinal cordsimple motor reflexes such as pulling your hand away after touching something hot. Lower brain stemmore complex subconscious motor reactions such as postural control. Cerebellumsubconscious control of movement such as that needed to coordinate multiple movements. Thalamusconscious distinction among sensations such as feeling hot or cold. Cerebral cortexconscious awareness of a signal and the location within body of the signal.

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Types of Sensory Receptors

Mechanoreceptorsrespond to mechanical forces such as pressure, touch, vibration, or stretch. Thermoreceptorsrespond to changes in temperature. Nociceptorsrespond to painful stimuli. Photoreceptorsrespond to light to allow vision. Chemoreceptorsrespond to chemical stimuli from foods, odors, and changes in blood concentrations.

Muscle and Joint Nerve Endings

w Joint kinesthetic receptors in joint capsules sense the position and movement of joints. w Muscle spindles sense how much a muscle is stretched. w Golgi tendon organs detect the tension of a muscle on its tendon, providing information about the strength of muscle contraction.

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SENSORY RECEPTORS AND PATHWAYS

SENSORY-MOTOR INTEGRATION

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Muscle Spindles
w A group of 4 to 20 small muscle fibers (intrafusal) with sensory and motor nerve endings, covered by a connective tissue sheath, and connected to extrafusal (or regular) muscle fibers. w The middle of the spindle can stretch, but cannot contract as it contains little or no actin and myosin. w When extrafusal fibers attached to the spindle are stretched, sensory neurons on the spindle transmit information to the CNS about the muscle's length. w Reflexive muscle contraction is triggered through the alpha motor neuron to resist further stretching. w Gamma motor neurons activate intrafusal fibers, causing the middle of the spindle to stretch, making the spindle sensitive to small degrees of stretch.

MUSCLE SPINDLE

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GOLGI TENDON ORGAN

Did You Know?

Muscles controlling fine movements, such as those controlling the eyes, have a small number of muscle fibers per motor neuron (about 1 neuron for every 15 muscle fibers). Muscles with more general function, such as those controlling the calf muscle in the leg, have many fibers per motor neuron (about 1 neuron for every 2,000 muscle fibers).

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Key Points
The Motor Response
w

Each muscle fiber is innervated by only one neuron, but one neuron may innervate up to several thousand muscle fibers. muscle fibers within a motor unit are of the same fiber type. Motor units are recruited in an orderly manner. Thus, specific units are called on each time a specific activity is performed; the more force needed, the more units recruited. Motor units with smaller neurons (ST units) are called on before those with larger neurons (FT units).

w All w

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