What term describes a nerve cell, the basic unit of the nervous system?

What term describes a nerve cell, the basic unit of the nervous system?

• A. Glial cell
• B. Dendrite
• C. Neuron
• D. Axon

Answer: (C)

The key idea is that neurons are the nerve cells that form the wiring and signaling backbone of the nervous system. Neurons are specialized to receive, process, and transmit information through electrical impulses along their axons and chemical signals at synapses. Glial cells provide support, nourishment, and insulation but they don’t themselves transmit nerve impulses. Dendrites are the branched extensions that pick up signals from other neurons, while the axon carries the signal away to other cells. So the term that describes the nerve cell itself is neuron.

The key idea is that neurons are the nerve cells that form the wiring and signaling backbone of the nervous system. Neurons are specialized to receive, process, and transmit information through electrical impulses along their axons and chemical signals at synapses. Glial cells provide support, nourishment, and insulation but they don’t themselves transmit nerve impulses. Dendrites are the branched extensions that pick up signals from other neurons, while the axon carries the signal away to other cells. So the term that describes the nerve cell itself is neuron.