Afferent

Afferent is a term used in medicine to describe certain nerves or neurons that carry impulses from receptors to the brain or spinal cord. Such nerves or neurons are sensitive, that is, they are directed from the periphery to the center (centripetal).

In addition, the term "afferent" can also be used to describe the blood vessels that supply the network of capillaries in a particular organ or area of ​​the human body. Such vessels are also sensitive because they are directed from the periphery to the center.

Finally, afferent vessels can refer to the lymphatic system, in particular the afferent lymphatic vessels that approach a lymph node.

It is important to note that the term "afferent" is usually used in the context of its opposite, the term "efferent". Efferent nerves or neurons carry impulses from the central nervous system to the periphery (centripetal), and efferent vessels carry blood from organs to the heart or lymph from lymph nodes.

In general, the term "afferent" is an important concept in medicine, which is used to describe the direction of movement of impulses in the nervous and circulatory systems. Understanding this term can help doctors and researchers better understand how different systems work in the human body.

Afferent nerves and neurons transmit impulses from peripheral receptors to the central nervous system. They play an important role in sensory processing and regulation of various body functions.

The afferent nervous system consists of three main components:

1. Receptors (sensory cells) that are found in the skin, muscles, joints, internal organs and other parts of the body. They perceive various stimuli and transmit information to the nervous system.
2. Afferent nerve fibers that transmit signals from receptors to the spinal cord and brain. They can be either thin myelinated fibers or unmyelinated ones.
3. The afferent nucleus, which is located in the spinal cord and is responsible for processing sensory information. This is where the integration of different types of sensory signals takes place and the formation of a common sensation.

In addition, the afferent system includes blood vessels that provide nutrition to peripheral tissues and organs. They are also involved in the transport of metabolites and other substances between the central nervous system and peripheral tissues.

Efferent nerves and neurons play opposite roles in the nervous system. They transmit impulses from the central nervous system to peripheral tissues and organs.

The main components of the efferent system include:

– Motor neurons in the spinal cord and brain that control the motor activity of muscles and joints.
– Efferent nerve fibers that travel from motor neurons to skeletal muscles and other effectors.
– Effectors such as muscles, glands, blood vessels and other organs that respond to signals from the central nervous system.

Thus, the afferent and efferent systems are the two main components of the nervous system and are responsible for transmitting signals between the central and peripheral nervous systems.

Afferent (from the Latin affero - bring, bringing) - nerve signals that carry a stimulus from the periphery (receptors, peripheral nerves) to the cerebral cortex; conduction of nerve impulses occurs along afferent nerve fibers; they collect in afferent terminals of the spinal cord and pons. Afferents are divided into somatosensory and viscerosensory, which also include one cranial nerve V3, the vagus nerve and the meninges with meningeal nerves. The somatovisceral affers contain both associative parts - their axons are formed by connecting the neuron of the modality (modality) with the modal COEX system and affer the soma through the mediation of intermodal somatic COEX systems, and synaptic parts.