THE AUTONOMIC NERVOUS STSTEM

INTRODUCTION

Human Nervous System consists of:

1. Central Nervous System
a)Brain
b)Spinal cord
2. Peripheral Nervous System:
a)Cranial nerves (12 pair) & their branches
b)Spinal nerves (31 pair) & their branches
 Peripheral Nervous System
1. Cranial nerves (12 pair) & their branches

• bring information from the sense organs to

the brain
• control muscles
• connected to glands
• connected to internal organs such as the
heart and lungs.
 Peripheral Nervous System
2 - Spinal nerves (31 pair) & their
branches
• 31 pairs of mixed peripheral nerves (8
cervical, 12 thoracic, 5 lumbar, 5 sacral,
and 1 coccygeal) that are connected
segmentally with the spinal cord,
dorsal sensory trunk, and ventral motor
root.
 Divisions of Peripheral Nervous
1. Somatic neurons - supply & receive fibers to
& from:
the skin, skeletal muscles, joints, & tendons.

2. Visceral neurons - supply & receive fibers to

& from:
smooth muscle, cardiac muscle, and glands.

- visceral motor fibers- those supplying

smooth muscle, cardiac muscle, & glands
-make up the autonomic nervous system
(ANS)
 AUTONOMIC NERVOUS SYSTEM (ANS)
The ANS (visceral or involuntary nervous system):
• functions without conscious, voluntary control

• Innervates cardiac muscle, smooth muscle, and various

endocrine and exocrine glands

• This nervous system influences the activity of most

tissues and organ systems in the body

• Therefore, the ANS makes a significant contribution to

homeostasis

e.g. regulation of blood pressure, gastrointestinal responses

to food, contraction of the urinary bladder, focusing of the
eyes, and thermoregulation
 ILLUSTRATION
• A story about Peter and his next door neighbor,
Joe
• Peter’s skeleton, Matilda.
• Joe leaves for work at 5:00 am when it is still
quite dark outside. On the night before, Peter
placed Matilda in the driver's seat of Joe's
pickup truck.
• The following morning Peter arose at 4:45 am,
poured coffee and waited patiently by the
window located nearest to Joe's truck.
• Completely unsuspecting, Joe came walking
down the driveway at his usual time. When he
opened the truck door, he was scared stiff and
screamed! Poor Joe stood by his truck wide-
eyed and clutching his chest.
 ILLUSTRATION
• “What happened to Joe?”
• Several events occurred in his body at
once.
• His heart began racing, his blood pressure
increased, his pupils dilated, he began
sweating, the hair on his arms and at the
back of his neck stood on end
• he felt a surge of adrenaline.
• These are some of the effects of
sympathetic nervous activity in Joe's
body.
 ILLUSTRATION
• Meanwhile, as Peter waited for Joe's early
morning arrival, the events occurring in
his body were quite different
• His heart rate was comparatively slower
and his digestive system was processing
the cream and sugar in his coffee.
• These are some of the effects of
parasympathetic nervous activity in
Peter’s body.
 SYMPATHETIC NERVOUS SYSTEM
• prepares the body for emergencies

• Mediates the "fight-or-flight" response by:

• increasing blood pressure and directing blood to skeletal muscles

and other tissues that must work hardest in the face of impending
danger.

• Adrenaline is the NT of the sympathetic nervous system.

• Thus the fibers of the sympathetic nervous system are said to be

adrenergic.

• The actions of adrenaline in the bloodstream complement those of

noradrenaline released by sympathetic nerves.

• These two agents work on the heart and blood vessels to raise
blood pressure in stressful situations.
 PARASYMPATHETIC NERVOUS SYSTEM
• The parasympathetic nervous system is
involved in the conservation of body energy

• Its activities stimulate digestion and slow heart

rate, both effects that help the body to either
gather or conserve energy

• Acetylcholine is the neurotransmitter of the

parasympathetic nervous system

• Thus, the fibers of the parasympathetic system

are said to be cholinergic.
FIG 3: SUMMARY OF THE
FEATURES OF THE ANS

DISTINCTIONS BETWEEN
THE SYMPATHETIC &
PARASYMPATHETIC
DIVISIONS
Subdivision Nerves Location Chemical General
Employed of Messenger Function
Ganglia

Sympathetic Thoracolumbar Alongside Norepinephrine Fight or flight

vertebral
column

Parasympathetic Craniosacral On or near Acetylcholine Conservation

an effector of body energy
organ
 REVIEW OF NEURONS
There are three functional classes of neurons:
1. Sensory neurons are afferent: i.e they transmit a
continuous stream of information about the thermal,
physical, and chemical status of the body to the CNS.

• The coordination of different physiological functions

depends on continual surveillance of the body tissues,
which is provided by specialized sensory receptors
distributed throughout the body.

• More than 20 different kinds of sensory receptors

constantly monitor conditions in the body.

• Each type generates an electrical signal in the form of

an action potential that is transmitted by afferent nerve
fibers to a specific site in the CNS.
 REVIEW OF NEURONS

2. Motor neurons are efferent: i.e. they

transmit instructions from the CNS to
effector body tissues, such as the heart or
skeletal muscles.

• These signals adjust the tissue's activities

from moment to moment.
 REVIEW OF NEURONS

3. Inter neurons - a mix of both a sensory

neuron and a motor neuron.

• These neurons usually only found in the

CNS.

• These neurons send messages between

both motor and sensory neurons.
 ANS
• The efferent pathways of the ANS each contain two neurons

• They communicate with each other in one of the autonomic

ganglia outside of the CNS (a ganglion is a cluster of nerve
cell bodies):

1. Preganglionic neuron - the first autonomic neuron has its

cell body in the CNS and sends a fiber out to a ganglion.

• The preganglionic neuron originates in the CNS with its cell

body in the lateral horn of the gray matter of the spinal cord
or in the brainstem.

• The axon of this neuron travels to an autonomic ganglion

located outside the CNS

• where it synapses with a postganglionic neuron.

 ANS
2. Postganglionic neuron -The second autonomic
neuron has its cell body in a ganglion

• and its fiber completes the efferent circuit by

innervating a particular effector tissue

• The Postganglionic neuron innervates the

effector tissue.
 The Sympathetic and Parasympathetic
Divisions of the Nervous System

The autonomic nervous system directs all activities of the body that occur without a
person's conscious control, such as breathing and food digestion. It has two parts: the
sympathetic division, which is most active in times of stress, and the parasympathetic
division, which controls maintenance activities and helps conserve the body's energy.
 ANS
• Synapses between the autonomic
postganglionic neuron and effector tissue—
• differ greatly from neuron-to-neuron synapses.

• The postganglionic fibers in the ANS do not

terminate in a single swelling like the synaptic
knob,

• nor do they synapse directly with the cells of a

tissue
 ANS
• Instead, where the axons of these fibers enter a given tissue, they
contain multiple swellings called varicosities.

• When the neuron is stimulated, these varicosities release

neurotransmitters along a significant length of the axon and,
therefore, over a large surface area of the effector tissue.

• The neurotransmitter diffuses through the interstitial fluid to

wherever its receptors are located in the tissue. This diffuse
release of the neurotransmitter affects many tissue cells
simultaneously.

• Furthermore, cardiac muscle and most smooth muscle have gap

junctions between cells. These specialized intercellular
communications allow for the spread of electrical activity from one
cell to the next.

• As a result, the discharge of a single autonomic nerve fiber to an

effector tissue may alter the activity of the entire tissue.
 Regulation of ANS Activity
• Reflex- rapid unconscious response to changes in the
internal or external environment needed to maintain
homeostasis.
• Reflex arc - the neural pathway over which impulses
travel during a reflex.
The components of a reflex arc include:
• receptor - responds to the stimulus
• afferent pathway (sensory neuron) - transmits impulse
into the spinal cord
• CNS - where spinal cord then processes information
• efferent pathway (motor neuron) - transmits impulse out
of spinal cord
• effector - a muscle or gland that receives the impulse
from the motor neuron & carries out the desired
response.
 Regulation of ANS Activity
• Visceral afferent neurons are sensory neurons that
conduct impulses initiated in receptors in smooth
muscle & cardiac muscle.

• These neurons are collectively referred to as

enteroceptors or visceroceptors.

• Visceral afferent neurons are unipolar neurons

that enter the spinal cord through the dorsal root

• their cell bodies are located in the dorsal root

ganglia.
 Neurotransmitters of the ANS
• The 2 most common neurotransmitters released by neurons of the
ANS are acetylcholine and norepinephrine.

• Neurotransmitters are synthesized in the axon varicosities and

stored in vesicles for subsequent release.

• Cholinergic neurons that use acetylcholine as a neurotransmitter

include:

• all preganglionic neurons (sympathetic & parasympathetic)

• all parasympathetic postganglionic neurons

• the sympathetic postganglionic neurons that supply the sweat

glands

• Adrenergic neurons that use adrenaline include all postganglionic

sympathetic neurons (except those that go to the sweat glands).
 Receptors for Autonomic Neurotransmitters

The effect caused by neurotransmitters or hormones is

determined by the:

• receptor distribution in a particular tissue

• the biochemical properties of the cells in that tissue,

specifically, the second messenger and enzyme systems
present within the cell

• The neurotransmitters of the ANS and the circulating

catecholamines bind to specific receptors on the cell
membranes of the effector tissue:

• Acetylcholine binds to 2 types of cholinergic receptors

 Receptors for Autonomic Neurotransmitters
1. Nicotinic receptors are found on the cell bodies of all
postganglionic neurons, both sympathetic and parasympathetic,
in the ganglia of the ANS.

They bind acetylcholine and other nicotine-like agents on autonomic

ganglia, adrenal medulla, and the motor end-plate of striated
muscle.

• Acetylcholine released from the preganglionic neurons binds to

these nicotinic receptors and causes a rapid increase in the
cellular permeability to Na+,K+ and Ca++ ions.

• The resulting influx of these 2 cations causes depolarization and

excitation of the postganglionic neurons of the ANS pathways.
 Receptors for Autonomic Neurotransmitters

2. Muscarinic receptors are found on the cell membranes of the effector

tissues and are linked to G proteins and second messenger systems
which carry out the intracellular effects.

• Acetylcholine released from all parasympathetic postganglionic

neurons and some sympathetic postganglionic neurons traveling to
sweat glands binds to these receptors.

• Muscarinic receptors may be either inhibitory or excitatory, depending

on the tissue upon which they are found.

• Eg muscarinic receptor stimulation in the myocardium is inhibitory and

decreases heart rate

• while stimulation of these receptors in the lungs is excitatory, causing

contraction of airway smooth muscle and bronchoconstriction.
 Receptors for Autonomic
Neurotransmitters
There are 2 classes of adrenergic receptors for norepinephrine and
epinephrine, alpha (α) and beta (β).

• there are at least 2 subtypes of receptors in each class: α1, α2, β1 and
β2.

• All of these receptors are linked to G proteins and second messenger

systems which carry out the intracellular effects.

• Alpha receptors are the more abundant of the adrenergic receptors.

The α1 receptors are more widely distributed on the effector tissues.

• α1 receptor stimulation leads to an increase in intracellular calcium. As

a result, these receptors tend to be excitatory.

• stimulation of α1 receptors causes contraction of vascular smooth

muscle resulting in vasoconstriction and increased glandular
secretion by way of exocytosis.
 Receptors for Autonomic
Neurotransmitters
• All adrenergic receptors and muscarinic receptors are coupled to G
proteins which are also embedded within the plasma membrane.

• Receptor stimulation causes activation of the G protein and the

formation of a the second messenger.

• The function of the intracellular second messenger molecules is to

elicit tissue-specific biochemical events within the cell which alter the
cell's activity.

• In this way, a given neurotransmitter may stimulate the same type of

receptor on 2 different types of tissue and cause 2 different responses

• This is due to the presence of different biochemical pathways within

each tissue.

• Sympathetic stimulation of β3 receptors in adipose tissue causes

lipolysis
 Termination of Neurotransmitter Activity
• For any substance to serve effectively as a neurotransmitter, it must be rapidly
inactivated or removed from the synapse or, in this case, the neuroeffector
junction.

• This is necessary in order to allow new signals to get through and influence
effector tissue function.

• The primary mechanism used by cholinergic synapses is enzymatic

degradation.

• Acetylcholinesterase hydrolyzes acetylcholine to its component choline and

acetate. It is one of the fastest acting enzymes in the body and acetylcholine
removal occurs in less than 1 msec.

• The most important mechanism for the removal of norepinephrine from the
neuroeffector junction is the reuptake of this neurotransmitter into the
sympathetic nerve that released it.

• Norepinephrine may then be metabolized intraneuronally by monoamine

oxidase (MAO).

• The circulating catecholamines, epinephrine and norepinephrine, are

inactivated by catechol-O-methyltransferase (COMT) in the liver.
 Neuron A (transmitting) to neuron B (receiving)

1. Mitochondrion

2. synaptic vesicle with neurotransmitters

3. Autoreceptor

4. Synapse with NT released (serotonin)

5. Postsynaptic receptors activated by NT (induction of a

postsynaptic potential)

6. Calcium channel

7. Exocytosis of a vesicle

8. Recaptured neurotransmitter