Activity 1

FUNCTION OF NERVE

I. Introduction

The natural ability of living things to respond to any change in its

environment by showing some kind of physiological activity basically sets it
apart from non-living things. The nature of such responses ensures the
continued survival of the organisms by adjusting to its internal as well as
external environment.

The nervous system, considered as the most complicated but organized

system in the body, mainly serves this important function. Although other
organs and cellular structures play a somewhat similar role and purpose (i.e.
muscles and glands), the nervous system hold two fundamental advantages.

One outstanding characteristic is the nerve structures’ sensitivity to the

environmental changes and second, is its distinguishing property to transmit
such excitation from one portion of a cell to another or even throughout all the
cells of a tissue/ organ.

The physiological unit of the nervous system is the nerve cell or neuron or
its corresponding nerve fibers. The latter component is not regarded as a
functionally independent structure although such fiber may differ from one
another in terms of histological structures and physiological behavior. Nerve
fibers are thus classified into two major groups based on the character of the
result of impulses: the afferent (sensory) and the efferent (motor) nerve fiber.

The following exercise will demonstrate the acts and principles of nerve
conduction and the functional differences between nerve fibers.

II. Methodology

Produce a muscle-nerve preparation by following the given instruction.

The completely excised muscle-nerve may now be suspended using femur

clamp and tying the end of Achilles tendon to the hook lever. Carefully rest the
sciatic nerve on the horizontal fixed glass slide. ALWAYS MOISTEN WITH
AMPHIBIAN RINGER’S SOLUTION.

A. Forms of Stimulation

Use a medium speed drum. Allow the complete rotation for each kind of
stimuli.
 1. Pinch or strike with a pithing needle or scalpel the free end of a nerve.
Immediately release after a tracing is recorded. After five (5) seconds,
repeat until a rotation is completed. This is your mechanical stimuli.

2. Touch the free end of the nerve lightly with a warm glass rod. After
tracing is recorded, remove the glass rod and touch again after a few
seconds. Repeat until one rotation is completed. This is your thermal
stimuli.

3. For the osmotic type of stimulation, place few crystals of NaCl on the
free end. After one rotation, immediately wash with Amphibian Ringer’s
solution and then adjust the drum in order to record continuous twitching,
if any, stop after one complete rotation.

4. For chemical stimuli, dip the free end of the nerve in a 50 ml beaker
filled with 1% HCl solution. Do this by letting the free end of the nerve
hang out in the horizontally fixed glass slide. After one rotation,
immediately wash with Amphibian Ringer solution. ALWAYS ALLOW YOUR
MUSCLE-NERVE TO REST AFTER EACH TEST. Set up kymograph including
inductorium and signal magnet.

5. Electrical stimulation is demonstrated by placing the stimulating

electrode in a fixed position under the nerve. Apply a mild shock by using
a single stimulation from the inductorium with the potentiometer set at 3
or 4. Immediately turn off the stimulating apparatus once a tracing is
recorded. Repeat after five (5) seconds until one rotation is completed.

Take photos or cut the tracings showing the different types of stimuli and
paste in data sheet.

B. Characteristic of stimulus

The drum should be kept stationary during stimulation such that any
contraction of the muscle traces only a vertical line. After the tracing is properly
recorded rotate the drum about 2 cm and wait for 30 seconds before another
stimulus is applied. The stimuli will be elicited by the use of the inductorium
and the strength of stimuli of current used will be based on the potentiometer
reading.

1. Start with the weakest current or “1” in the potentiometer. Press the
simple key. If nothing happens, increase the current and move the drum
to 2 cm and wait for thirty (30) seconds.
 2. Apply the next stimulus (“2”). Again take note of the current applied to
the nerve until the first visible contraction or tracing is recorded in the
kymograph paper. This is your threshold (or liminal or minimal)
stimulation. The current slightly below this is your subliminal
stimulation.

3. Gradually increase the current applied and deliver a single stimulus to the
free end of the nerve. Take note of the current. When the responses of
tracing shows no more increase with the increased current, maximal
stimulation has been attained.

4. Reduce the current slightly below the threshold so that no twitch is

obtained. Confirm this as your subliminal stimulation after a 10 second
interval. Then stimulate the free end of the nerve ten to fifteen times at a
rate of 2-3 seconds using the simple key and drum rotating at medium
speed. This is your summation of subliminal stimuli.

Label your tracings properly. Take photos or cut similar strips for each
stimulus and paste it on group data sheet.

C. Chemical Blocking of Nerve Conduction

1. Start by determining the threshold stimulus (the drum should be kept

stationary during each stimulation and then rotated 2 cm before stimulus
is applied after 2 minutes).

2. Lay the nerve on a glass slide moistened with Ringer’s solution. Place
under the middle portion of the nerve in a small piece of cotton soaked
with ether and cover with another piece of clean cotton.

3. Place a piece of filter paper moistened with Amphibian Ringer’s solution

over the whole preparation except for the sciatic nerve.

4. Determine the threshold of the nerve after every two minutes by

stimulating the free end of the nerve. It might be necessary to moisten
cotton with a few drops of Ringer’s solution every now and then.

5. Once anesthesia has been attained, stimulate the nerve in a portion

between the cotton soaked in ether and the gastrocnemius muscle.
Record all your data in the data sheet.

6. Wash away ether with Ringer’s solution and at two minute interval
determine the threshold value. Note the number of minutes necessary for
 the nerve to recover its normal threshold. Record all threshold values
obtained.

Label all tracings properly. Take photos or cut out tracings into strips and
paste in group data sheet.

D. Afferent and Efferent Nerve Fibers

1. Produce a spinal animal. Pin the frog in a dissecting pan and open the
abdomen with a middle incision in the belly. Remove all the viscera.

2. Locate the sacral plexus with the use of a glass slide and gently lift the
three (3) roots of the sciatic nerve. Apply a loose ligature. Do the same
procedure for the right sciatic nerve.

3. Remove the skin from both legs to enable you to observe twitching in the
gastrocnemius.

4. Lift gently the roots of the sciatic nerve on the stimulating electrode.
Make sure that no contact is made between the electrodes and the
neighboring tissues.

5. Use the inductorium to stimulate the left nerve for one second with a
current enough to cause contraction on the left gastrocnemius. Stimulate
the nerve again with a current enough to cause contraction on both
gastrocnemius. Record your data.

6. In the middle of the right thigh, securely tie separate ligatures about
(5mm apart) on the sciatic nerve and make a clean cut between the two
ligatures. Using the current known to cause contraction to both muscles,
stimulate the proximal end of the cut nerve. Observe. Record all
observations.

Group Output: SCIENTIFIC PAPER

Title Page
I. Introduction
II. Materials and Methods
III.Results
IV. Discussion
V. Conclusion
VI. Literature Cited