ANATOMY

GENERAL ANATOMY

NERVOUS SYSTEM

Question [CLICK ON ANY CHOICE TO KNOW THE RIGHT ANSWER]
What do the nodes of Ranvier do?
A
help speed up impulse
B
help slow down impulse
C
protecting the axon
D
insulating the axon
Explanation: 

Detailed explanation-1: -However, nodes of Ranvier interrupt the insulation at intervals, and this discontinuity enables impulses to jump from node to node in a process known as saltatory conduction.

Detailed explanation-2: -Action potentials travel down the axon by jumping from one node to the next. Nodes of Ranvier are gaps in the myelin along the axons; they contain sodium and potassium ion channels, allowing the action potential to travel quickly down the axon by jumping from one node to the next.

Detailed explanation-3: -In myelinated axons, the nodes of Ranvier function as repeaters to regenerate the action potential as it propagates in a saltatory manner along the axon to the nerve terminal, thereby dramatically increasing the speed of action potential propagation4, 5.

Detailed explanation-4: -Summary. Myelin can greatly increase the speed of electrical impulses in neurons because it insulates the axon and assembles voltage-gated sodium channel clusters at discrete nodes along its length.

Detailed explanation-5: -Myelin speeds up impulses Most nerve fibres are surrounded by an insulating, fatty sheath called myelin, which acts to speed up impulses.

There is 1 question to complete.