Welcome to Lesson 12 of the Human Biology Masterclass.
In this lesson, we enter one of the fastest and most sophisticated communication networks in the human body: the nervous system.
After exploring cells, molecules, metabolism, and digestion, we now move from biochemical processes to electrical and chemical communication.
You'll learn:
• The major divisions of the nervous system: CNS and PNS
• The difference between the somatic and autonomic nervous systems
• How the sympathetic and parasympathetic systems regulate different functions
• The structure and function of neurons
• How myelin and the nodes of Ranvier increase the speed of neural communication
• What an action potential is and how it travels along an axon
• The meaning of resting potential, threshold, depolarisation, repolarisation, and hyperpolarisation
• How neurons communicate across synapses
• The roles of major neurotransmitters including dopamine, GABA, and glutamate
• How reflex arcs allow extremely rapid protective responses
• How neurological diseases can affect synapses, neurotransmitters, myelin, ion channels, and blood supply
• The biological mechanisms involved in conditions such as Alzheimer's disease, Parkinson's disease, multiple sclerosis, epilepsy, and stroke
The nervous system does not rely on a single type of signal. It integrates electrical activity, chemical neurotransmission, sensory information, and complex networks of neurons to coordinate movement, sensation, behaviour, and internal body functions.
Understanding how neurons communicate provides an essential foundation for studying the brain, cognition, emotion, memory, and human behaviour.
Human Biology Masterclass
Next lesson: Lesson 13 – The Brain: Lobes, Emotion, Memory & Modern Brain Imaging
Continue the complete Human Biology Masterclass through the playlist on Human Science Academy.
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