Question

Classify neurons based on the number of neurites.

Answer 1

Neurons:

1. Neurons are the fundamental unit of the brain and nervous system.

Neurites:

1. They are projections from the cell body of neurons.
2. It can be a dendrite or an axon.

Classification based on the number of neurites:

1. Based on the number of neurites, neurons can be classified into:

A. Anaxonic neurons:

1. They lack axons.
2. They have multiple dendrites.
3. They communicate through their dendrites and do not produce action potentials.

B. Unipolar neurons:

1. Unipolar neurons have one axon.
2. Unipolar (pseudo-unipolar) neurons are sensory neurons with cell bodies located in the spinal cord and cranial nerve ganglia.

C. Bipolar neurons:

1. Bipolar neurons have an axon and a dendrite that extend from the cell body to opposite poles.
2. Many bipolar neurons are specialized sensory neurons for assimilation of the senses.
3. As such, they play a role in sensory pathways for smell, taste, hearing, touch, but mainly vision.

D. Multipolar neurons:

1. Multipolar neurons consist of an axon and several dendrites that are attached to its soma.
2. These are the most common.
3. Most motor neurons and many interneurons are multipolar.