About the Central Nervous System

The central nervous system plays an important role in human functioning, including regulating body processes, behavior, movement and complex thought.

Structure

• The central nervous system contains the brain and spinal cord. The brain is comprised of two main parts, the prosencephalon and brain stem.

Function

• The function of the central nervous system is to transmit information between the brain and the rest of the body. The prosencephalon of the brain is responsible for higher order processes, such as memory and rational thought, while the brain stem is responsible for lower order processes, such as regulation of heart rate and respiration.

Disorders

• Central nervous system disorders include seizure disorders such as epilepsy, Parkinson's disease, Huntington's disease and multiple sclerosis

Aging

• Nerve cells are lost after an individual reaches young adulthood. This increases the time it takes to transmit information between nerve cells.

Misconceptions

• Some common misconceptions held about the brain and central nervous system are that the brain cannot heal itself, it is a uniform tissue mass, the spinal cord and vertebrae are the same thing, and that the brain does not change structurally. These are all untrue.