Jasmine is in her physiology lab practicing labeling a neuron. When she gets to the nodes of Ranvier, she will be labeling ______.
A) the spiny outgrowths on dendrites
B) the myelin sheath
C) the swelling at the end of the axon
D) the gaps in the myelin sheath along the axon

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

The nodes of Ranvier are the gaps in the myelin sheath that are found along the axon of a neuron. This allows for saltatory conduction, which is the rapid jumping of an action potential between these nodes. Choice A (spiny outgrowths on dendrites) refers to dendritic spines, choice B (myelin sheath) is the insulating layer around the axon, and choice C (swelling at the end of the axon) is the axon terminal or synaptic knob.

Jasmine Is in Her Physiology Lab Practicing Labeling a Neuron