A neuron is a specialized type of cell that processes and transmits information in the nervous system of almost all animals, including humans. Most neurons have four parts: (1) a cell body (called a soma), (2) dendrites, (3) an axon, and (4) axon terminals, also called synaptic buttons or terminal buttons. The human nervous system is made up of on the order of 100 billion neurons of three broad types: (1) sensory neurons, which transmit information to the brain; (2) motor neurons, which send messages from the brain to control muscles and movement; and (3) interneurons, which link neurons in the central nervous system (CNS) to each other to form information processing networks. Neurons, along with glial cells and other specialized support cells, make up ...

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