Drugs and Crime - Neurotransmitters Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Drugs and Crime - Neurotransmitters - Assignment Example The brain as an entry of the CNS is the centre of control in the body that has three main components; brainstem, forebrain and the hindbrain. The forebrain’s responsibility is stretched several functions such as thinking, understanding, perceiving, reception and sensory information processing among others. Some of the structures forming it include thalamus, hypothalamus, cerebrum and the cerebral cortex (Nieuwenhuys, 2008). The hind and midbrain from the brainstem. Visual and auditory responses are carried out in the midbrain. About the hindbrain, it stretches from the spinal cord. It holds structures that build it such as the cerebellum and the pons. This region is vital for the maintenance of equilibrium and balance, coordination and conducting the sensory information. The medulla oblongata is also in the hindbrain, responsible for automated functions such as heart rate, digestion and breathing. The spinal cord is also a structure in the central nervous system; it takes a cylindrical form of bundled nerve fibres that are connected to the brain, running in the protective column that extends from the neck. Its nerves relay external stimuli to and from the brain. Body cells contain neurons and are the basic units of the CNS, they hold nerve processes which consist of dendrites and axons to transmit and conduct signals. Axons ferry signals outside the cell body, while dendrites do the reverse (Nieuwenhuys, 2008). Neurons are further classified as sensory or motor, inter-neurons. The motor neurons transport information from the CNS to glands, muscles and organs while the sensory neurons carry information to the CNS from external or internal stimuli. Signals between the sensory and motor are relayed by the inter-neurons The synapse is the gap between the axon and dendrites that holds the synapse fluid where axon releases the neurotransmitters.  Neurotransmitters are mostly associated with dopamine and schizophrenia.