Brain Messengers

Every thought and emotion you have, and every movement you make, is the result of a series of signals sent by your brain. It’s a collective and flawless symphony of cells, tissues and chemical impulses, acting in unison, all in a split second, and the maestro is our marvelous brain.

Each and every one of those signals is carried by a tiny chemical messenger, which delivers vital bits of information throughout our nervous system and body.

The brain and the nervous system contain many types of messengers or cells, but the primary one is called the neuron. There are many thousands of different neurons, and trillions of supportive cells. Each neuron is uniquely structured, with long tail-like “axons” that transmit electrical impulses, and spindly branch-like arms called “dendrites” that receive information from other neurons.

While there are many different types of neurons—all targeting different body functions and senses—they all communicate with one another through trillions of synapses, tiny spaces between the individual cells. The more you use your brain, the more synaptic connections form between existing brain cells. All important neurotransmitters are chemicals that amplify and modulate messages between the neurons, synapses and other cells. We’re born with an estimated 100 billion brain cells. But we lose about 100,000 neurons a day because of such things as stress and physical shock. But, not to worry. Even if we live to 100, we’ll still retain about 96 percent of or original brain cells, and we can grow new cells throughout our life.



This Discovery Channel video provides a vivid illustration of how neurons and synapses work, providing the basis for all brain activity.