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Figure 147.
There is great diversity in the size and shape of neurons throughout the nervous system.
Examples include (a) a pyramidal cell from the cerebral cortex, (b) a Purkinje cell from the cerebellar cortex,
and (c) olfactory cells from the olfactory epithelium and olfactory bulb.
Despite the fact that there are numerous distinct neuron cell subtypes, there are generally four
basic types of neurons:
unipolar, bipolar, multipolar, and pseudounipolar. These four fundamental
types of neuron are depicted in Figure 148. One structure only protrudes from the soma of a unipolar
neuron. These neurons are present in insects but not in vertebrates, where they stimulate glands or
muscles. One axon and one dendrite protrude from the soma of a bipolar neuron. The retinal bipolar
cell, which receives signals from light-sensitive photoreceptor cells and transmits them to ganglion
cells that carry the signal to the brain, is an illustration of a bipolar neuron. The most prevalent kind
of neuron is a multipolar neuron. One axon and numerous dendrites can be found in each multipolar
neuron. The central nervous system contains multipolar neurons (brain and spinal cord). A Purkinje
cell in the cerebellum, which has numerous branching dendrites but only one axon, is an illustration
of a multipolar neuron. Pseudounipolar cells share characteristics with both unipolar and bipolar cells.
A pseudounipolar cell has a single process that extends from the soma, like a unipolar cell, but this
process later branches into two distinct structures, like a bipolar cell. The axon of the majority of
sensory neurons, which are pseudounipolar and have two extensions, one connected to dendrites that
receive sensory information and the other to dendrites that send this information to the spinal cord, is
bifurcated into two branches.