How is a Peripheral nerve adapted for its role?

Question

How is a Peripheral nerve adapted for its role?

Answer 1

here are a few you may find useful:

1. Nerves are surrounded by a mylin sheath, propagated by Schwann cells. It consists of 80% lipids and 20% protein. It provides an incomplete covering over the cells. The electrical signal 'jumps' to the holes in the mylin sheath, thus speeding up tansmition. These holes are called the nodes of Ranvier. They also provide a framework for repair the case of nerve damage. They also prevent the electrical signal escaping into the body.

2. at the synapse, nerve cells have a quick chemical release system called exocytosis. instead of having signalling proteins made and then released when a signal is recieved as in normal cells, nerve cells have vesicles 'docked' at the membrane to be released as quickly as possible when a signal is recieve, speeding up the signal.

3. mitochondria are concentrated at the synapse, so that signal chemicals can be made and replaced in the quickest time possible.

4. some nerve cells have electrical synapses, in which the nerve cells are incredibly close together, and pass an electrical signal. these are even faster then chemical synapses.

hope that helps. You may have noticed the pattern, nerve adaptations are all to do with speeding up the transmition of impulses, so think along those lines while searching for more.