Nerve cells, or neurons, typically have a large cell body with one or more projections extending from the body. They can come in many shapes or sizes and in lab 12 we will look at many of the different shapes.
Right now, we are just observing what a typical nerve cell looks like. These neurons will have multiple projections coming off of them. Some of the projections are quite long and when you look at the slide, you may just observe the projections and not the cell. Similar to skeletal muscle, nerve cells are often called nerve fibers because of the projections. Be careful with what name you call these cells. Nerve cell, nerve fiber and neuron all are the same thing. However, a nerve is a bundle of projections from nerve cells. Lastly, you will also find some speck like cells around the nerve cells. These are another type of cell found in nervous tissue called glial cells.
The pictures on this page were taken by my anatonmy students in the spring and fall of 2023 as part of a larger project.
