Medical School

Neurons in the Brain

Flashes of light may one day be used to control the human brain, and that day just got a lot closer. (WIRED Magazine Science Article)

Structure of a neuron

(a) Structure of a multipolar neuron such as a spinal motor neuron. (b) Photograph of this neuron type. (c) Detail of the myelin sheath. (d) Neurofibrils of the soma. (e) Nissl bodies, stained masses of rough ER separated by the bundles of neurofibrils shown in part (d).

Variations in Neuron Structure

Top row, left to right: Two multipolar neurons of the brain—a pyramidal cell and a Purkinje cell. Second row, left to right: Two bipolar neurons—a bipolar cell of the retina and an olfactory neuron. Third row: A unipolar neuron of the type involved in the senses of touch and pain. Bottom row: An anaxonic neuron (amacrine cell) of the retina.

Rat Brain Tissue Sections
Much of what has been learned about the human brain has been discovered from research on the rat brain. Though smaller and less complex than that of humans, the rat brain is extremely useful as a subject of study because most regions of the brain are essentially the same among mammalian species. The rat brain has been heavily employed as an animal model for various neurological diseases, such as Parkinson’s disease. In fact, it was studies of rats that led to the fundamental discovery that the Parkinson’s is caused by the loss of dopamine within the brain. Research with the rodents has also been critical in testing new drug treatments for the disease, as well as investigations of other potential therapeutic approaches, such as gene therapy. 

Hippocampal neuron expressing monomeric Green Fluorescent Protein

Hippocampal neurons (green) and glial cells (red)

Pyramidal neurons in mouse cerebral cortex (Golgi stain)

Mark West

Special Course Leader, Neurostereology
“Hippocampal Neurons”

Pyramidal neurons of the CA3 region of the hippocampus of a rat brain. The photo was taken at the Anatomical Institute, Aarhus University in 2004. Zeiss microscope. The section has been stained with the Golgi-Cox method which shows the details of the dendrites and axons of a small percentage of neurons in the region. It has been counterstained to show the location of the cell bodies of other pyramidal cells in the region, which appears as a blue layer.

(via dryeffects)

Cerebral pyramidal neurons are shown at two magnifications (Golgi stain)

A variety of pyramidal neurons from different parts of the brain

Astrocyte

Neurons

Neurons

Pyramidal neurons

Pyramidal neurons