Neurobiology Glossary

The electrical signal that travels along a neuron's axon when the cell is stimulated.

Describes nerve impulse conduction in the direction opposite to normal physiological propagation.

Star-shaped glial cells that provide structural and metabolic support to neurons in the central nervous system.

The specialized region of a neuron where the cell body transitions to the axon and action potentials are initiated.

The process by which cellular materials move along nerve fiber pathways between cell body and terminals.

A specialized region of rodent somatosensory cortex organized into discrete anatomical units corresponding to individual...

A selective barrier that prevents most substances in blood from entering brain tissue.

Swollen terminal or en passant enlargement of an axon containing synaptic vesicles.

A developmental malformation characterized by the complete or partial absence of the corpus callosum, the major white ma...

Circular receptive field organization with opposite responses in center and surrounding regions.

A specialized GABAergic interneuron that selectively targets the axon initial segments of pyramidal neurons.

Breakdown and dispersal of Nissl bodies in injured neurons, indicating cellular stress or damage.

Bundle of nerve fibers connecting corresponding structures on opposite sides of the nervous system.

Comprehensive map of neural connections within a nervous system or brain region.

A vertical arrangement of neurons in the cerebral cortex sharing similar functional properties and connectivity patterns...

The organized layered structure of the cerebral cortex, typically consisting of six distinct layers.

A wave of depolarization that propagates across cortical tissue, causing temporary suppression of neural activity and as...

Organization and arrangement of cell types within neural tissue, particularly cortical layers.

Brain network active during rest and introspective tasks, including medial prefrontal and posterior cingulate regions.

The process of damage or loss of myelin, the protective sheath around nerve fibers.

Small protrusions from dendrites that receive synaptic inputs and can change shape in response to activity.

Remote functional depression in brain regions anatomically connected to but distant from a primary lesion site.

An action potential that originates from an abnormal location along the axon rather than the normal initiation site.

Recording of electrical activity directly from the brain surface using electrodes placed on the cortex.