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- Glossary
Bipolar cells
The bipolar cell is a bipolar neuron, i.e., a neuron with one axon and one dendrite located in the middle layer of the retina. It transmits sensory information from the photoreceptors to the ganglion cells.
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- Glossary
Bitter receptors
One of several groups of sensors that specialize in perceiving a specific taste quality. The sensory cells in which the taste receptors perform their function are located in the taste buds on the tongue and in the surrounding mucous membranes. Bitter receptors belong to the family of G protein-coupled receptors. A single cell can contain several different bitter receptors. As a result, it responds to different bitter substances with the same signal. This makes it very difficult for us to distinguish between individual bitter substances in terms of taste.
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- Glossary
Blind spot
A blind spot in visual perception caused by the anatomy of the eye: since the optic nerve leaves the eye at the optic disc, there are no photoreceptors there – and no perception can occur. This blind spot is not consciously perceived.
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- Glossary
Blood-brain barrier
A selectively permeable membrane formed by cells in the walls of the capillary blood vessels in the brain. It protects the brain from harmful substances in the blood, but allows nutrients and oxygen to pass from the blood into the brain.
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- Glossary
Semicircular canals
The three semicircular canals per ear are interconnected, fluid-filled tubes that are positioned almost at right angles to each other and belong to the balance organ in the inner ear (vestibular apparatus). They serve to register angular accelerations, i.e., rotational movements of the head.
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- Glossary
Brain-computer interface
A direct interface between the brain and a computer. There are various approaches to developing brain-computer interfaces: invasive – via an electrode in the brain – as well as non-invasive – via EEG. They enable locked-in patients, for example, to communicate again. Another area of application is the control of arm or leg prostheses via peripheral nerves.
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- Glossary
Broca's area
An area of the prefrontal cortex (cerebral cortex) that is usually located in the left hemisphere. Plays a key role in the motor production of speech. First described by French neurologist Paul Pierre Broca in 1861.
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- Glossary
Brodmann area
As early as 1909, neuroanatomist Korbinian Brodmann divided the cerebral cortex into different areas. He did this based on histological criteria, distinguishing these areas according to their cellular structure. It later became apparent that these different structures of the cortex are often associated with different specializations.
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- Glossary
Olfactory bulb
The anterior part of the brain that transmits information from the olfactory nerves to the olfactory brain (rhinencephalon) after initial processing via the olfactory tract.
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- Glossary
Caenorhabditis elegans
The nematode Caenorhabditis elegans is a well-known and popular model organism in genetics. This is not least because each adult animal has exactly 1031 cell nuclei and its nervous system consists of exactly 302 nerve cells. It is only about a millimeter long and lives in the soil in temperate zones.
