References:

• https://kidshealth.org/teen/your_body/body_basics/brain_nervous_system.html#
• https://www.innerbody.com/
• www.ted.com
• https://reeduca.com/neuropsicologia-adul-ninos.aspx
• https://www.google.com.co/search?q=google+imagenes&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ei=8coTU5DhGsiFkQfN-YC4Aw&sqi=2&ved=0CAcQ_AUoAQ&biw=1197&bih=702#q=brain&tbm=isch
• https://www.rch.org.au/studentorientation/5_children_and_adults/Differences_between_children_and_adults/
• https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3400202/
• https://www.itfnz.org.nz/reference/essays/5-differences.php

   BRAIN DISEASES

1. Brain tumor: a tumor is abnormal tissue that grows in the brain, that can be malignant or benign.usually the grow in one place but can be cured surgically 

2. Cerebral Palsy: is a developmental defect that appear after or before the birth of a child. The Cerebral Palsy affects the motor areas, and the intelligence of this individuals are limited and sometimes they can have a severe mental retardation. This disease can affect the body movement that can be severe or less severe.

3.Epilepsy: is a disease of the nervous system that leads a person to have seizures. A seizure is an uncontrolled movement of the body and sometimes it involves loss of consciousness.

• partial seizures: specific areas of the brain, and symptoms vary depending on the location in wich the seizure activity is being performed.
• generalized seizures: involves a larger portion of the brain. 

5.Meningitis and Encephalitis: this diseases are infections of the brain and the spinal cord whose lead actor is a virus or a bacteria. Both diseases can leave a permanent injury on the brain. 

• Meningitis: inflammations of the coverings of the brain and spinal cord
• Encephalitis: inflammations of the brain tissue.

Figures retrieved from google images.

DIFFERENCES BETWEEN CHILDREN AND ADULTS ACCORDING TO BRAIN DEVELOPMENT

The growth of thought in children:

Figure 1: areas that are being used when solvindg an aritmethic problem. (retrieved from: https://eideneurolearningblog.blogspot.com/2012/03/children-and-adults-use-different.html)

Figure 2: differences between the children and adults when learning a second language (retrieved from: https://epilepsyu.com/blog/time-proven-factor-learning-second-language/)

Figure 3: brain activity while playing a game, difference between the adults, teenagers and childrens (retrieved from:https://newpittsburghcourieronline.com/2012/11/21/what-were-you-thinking/)

Figure 4: https://www.rch.org.au/studentorientation/5_children_and_adults/Differences_between_children_and_adults/

Functions of the Nervous System
There are 3 main functions of the nervous system: Sensory, integration and Motor.

• Sensory: the main function of the nervous system when we are talking about the sensory function is that this involves collecting information from the sensory receptors that monitor the internal and external conditions of the body.

• Integration: this process integrates many sensory signals that passes through the central nervous system. As well this process take place in the gray matter and is performed by the interneurons

• Motor:The main purpose of tis function is to carry signals from the gray matter of the central nervous system. 

The Divisions of the Nervous System

Central Nervous System
The two main structures that form the central nervous system is The brain and spinal cord. 

Peripheral Nervous System
The peripheral nervous system includes  the parts of the nervous system outside of the brain and spinal cord (cranial and spinal nerves, ganglia, and sensory receptors).

Somatic Nervous System
The somatic nervous system includes all of the voluntary efferent neurons. 

Autonomic Nervous System

The autonomic nervous systemt includes all of the involuntary efferent neurons. The ANS controls subconscious effectors       (visceral muscle tissue, cardiac muscle tissue, and glandular tissue).

There are 2 divisions of the Autonomic Nervous System in the body: the sympathetic and parasympathetic divisions.

• Sympathetic. The sympathetic division forms the body’s response to stress, danger, excitement, exercise, emotions, and embarrassment. The sympathetic division increases respiration and heart rate, releases adrenaline and other stress hormones, and decreases digestion to cope with these situations.
   
• Parasympathetic. The parasympathetic division forms the body’s response when the body is relaxed, resting, or feeding. The parasympathetic works to undo the work of the sympathetic division after a stressful situation. Among other functions, the parasympathetic division works to decrease respiration and heart rate, increase digestion, and permit the elimination of wastes.

Figures: retrieved from google images

Nerves

Nerves are packages of axons in the peripheral nervous system whose principal function is to carry signals between the brain and the spinal cord and the rest of the body. There are different types of nerves, such as: Afferent, Efferent and Mixed Nerves, Cranial Nerves and Spinal Nerves.

• Afferent, Efferent, and Mixed Nerves:The nerves that carry information from the sensory receptors to the central nervous system is known as afferent nerves. Efferent nerves are the one that carry signals from the central nervous system to the effectors. The mixed nerves contain both afferent and efferent axons.
•  
• Cranial Nerves: there are 12 pairs of cranial nerves. Each cranial nerve pair is identified by a Roman numeral 1 to 12 also each nerve has a descriptive name (olfactory, optic, others) that identifies its function or location. The cranial nerves provide a direct connection to the brain for the special sense organs.
   
• Spinal Nerves: there are 31 pairs of spinal nerves located along the spinal cord. The spinal nerves are mixed nerves that carry both sensory and motor signals. The 31 spinal nerves are split into 5 groups named for the 5 regions of the vertebral column.

Meninges

The main purpose of the meninges is to protect the central nervous system. There are three important layers: The Dura Mater, Arachnoid Mater and Pia Mater.

• Dura mater: this layer is the thickest one and the most superficial layer of the meninges. It protects the nervous system from external damage, it contains the cerebrospinal fluid and provides blood to the nervous tissues.
   
• Arachnoid mater: this is a much thinier layer that is located beneath the dura mater. This layer contains many fibers that conects it with the pia mater, those fibers, cross a space called subarachnoid space.
   
• Pia mater: This layer is the delicate one that is on the outside of the brain and the spinal cord.
• Fig 1. The meninges with the subarachnoid space (retrieved from: google images)
• Fig 2. The meninges (retrieved from: google image)

LONGEVITY 

What controls aging? Biochemist Cynthia Kenyon has found a simple genetic mutation that can double the lifespan of a simple worm, C. elegans. The lessons from that discovery, and others, are pointing to how we might one day significantly extend youthful human life in the link below.

• new.ted.com/talks/cynthia_kenyon_experiments_that_hint_of_longer_lives
• www.ted.com/talks/aubrey_de_grey_says_we_can_avoid_aging.html
• new.ted.com/talks/dan_buettner_how_to_live_to_be_100

retrieved from: www.ted.com

 Cynthia Kenyon, Biochemist, geneticist

Aubrey de Gray

https://www.ted.com/speakers/aubrey_de_grey.html

Dan Buettner

https://new.ted.com/talks/dan_buettner_how_to_live_to_be_100

LINKS WITH INFORMATION ABOUT CYNTHIA

• https://kenyonlab.ucsf.edu/
• https://new.ted.com/speakers/cynthia_kenyon

The brain

The brain is located inside the cranial cavity, where the skull protects it, becuase of the soft origin of itself. the brain is divided into three categories according to the embrionary development: The Forebrain (or prosencephalon), The Midbrain (or mesencephalon) and The Hidbrain (or rhombencephalon) 

• The Forebrain: is conformed by the cerebrum, thalamus, hypothalamus and pineal gland. Professionals on neuroanatomy classifies the area where the thalamus and pineal cord in the diencephalon
• The Midbrain: located near the center of the brain right between the midbrain and the interbrain, it contain a portion of the brainstem.
• The Hidbrain: it contains the remaining of the brainstem, cerebellum and pons.  Professionals in neuroanatomy reference to the cerebellum and pons as part of the metencephalon.
• 

Toghether the brain and the spine forms The Central Nervous System in wich the infromation is processed and the responses are originated.

The brain apart of being responsible for mental functions sucha as consciousness, memory, planning, it is also the main participant in the control of the respiration, herat rate, blood and also digestion.

The Spinal Cord

The Spinal Cord is a thin mass formed by neurons that carries informations through the vertebral cavity, beggining at the medula oblongata of the brain and continuing to the lumbar region of the spine. The White matter of the spinal cord functions as the main conduct of nerves signals to the body, and the grey matter integrates reflexes to stimuli.

Figures: Retrieved form google images.

Nervous Tissue
The nervous system is componed by two major nervous tissue made by cells: neurons and neuroglia.

• Neurons. Neurons are also known as the nerve celles that transmitts electrochemical signs to the body. This type of cell differenciates from others due to cellular processes that this develop. A neuron is componed by the cell body, dendrites and axons.    

1. Cell body: where all the organelles sucha as the nucleous, mitochondria, golgi apparatus, nucleolus, ryboseome, lysosome, endoplasmic reticulum, and others.
2. Dendrites: pick up stimuli from the enviorment, sensory receptor cells and it recieves the chemical messages from other neurons.
3. Axons: transmits and electro-chemical signal to other neurons.

• There are different classes of neurons, Afferent Neurons (sensory neurons), Efferent Neurons (motor neurons) and Interneurons 

1. Afferent Neurons, are the sensory ones, which transmits the sensory signals to the central nervous system from the receptors of the body.
2. Efferent Neurons, are the motor ones, this neurons transmits signals from the central nervous to the effectos in the body (e.j.muscles)
3. Interneurons: the kind of neurons integrates the information recived from the afferent neurons to direct the function of the body through efferent neurons.

• Neuroglia: also known as the glial cell and acts as the helper of the nervous system cells. The neuroglia are vital to maintain a functioning nervous system, beacuse of the protection it gives to the neurons of the entire body.