nerve impulse

noun

: the progressive physicochemical change in the membrane of a nerve fiber that follows stimulation and serves to transmit a record of sensation from a receptor or an instruction to act to an effector

called also nervous impulse

Examples of nerve impulse in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Scientists in search of salt taste receptors already knew that our bodies have special proteins that act as channels to allow sodium to cross nerve membranes for the purpose of sending nerve impulses. —Amber Dance, Discover Magazine, 2 Oct. 2023

These minerals help regulate muscle function, nerve impulses, and fluid balance within the body. —Amber Smith, Discover Magazine, 31 Aug. 2023

The body has so many redundant circuits of interacting nerve impulses and hormones to control weight that tweaking one simply did not make a difference. —Gina Kolata, New York Times, 17 Aug. 2023

Thiamin Thiamin, otherwise known as vitamin B1 has been shown to play a role in the conduction of nerve impulses that are sent from the brain, says Halperin. —Cori Ritchey, Men's Health, 31 July 2023

For example, Moody says that vitamin B12, in particular, helps maintain red blood cells and provides some of the coating on our nerves that help conduct nerve impulses. —Perri O. Blumberg, Men's Health, 30 June 2023

Vocal cord paralysis occurs when the nerve impulses to the larynx — the area of the throat with the vocal cords — are disrupted, according to the Mayo Clinic. —Caitlin O'Kane, CBS News, 14 June 2023

According to Healthline, the alkaloids in poison hemlock can affect nerve impulse transmission to muscles, which eventually can kill the person through respiratory failure. —Emily Deletter, The Enquirer, 11 Apr. 2023

Recordings of electrical activity and x-ray images confirmed that nerve impulses strategically activated specific muscles in free areas. —Lars Fischer, Scientific American, 1 July 2022

Word History

First Known Use

1870, in the meaning defined above

Kids Definition

nerve impulse

noun

: the change in electrical charge that moves along the nerve fiber of a neuron in response to a stimulus (as pain) and serves to transmit a record of sensation from a receptor to the spinal cord or brain, relay a signal to another neuron, or carry an instruction to act to a muscle or gland

Medical Definition

nerve impulse

noun

variants also nervous impulse

: an electrical signal that travels along a nerve fiber in response to a stimulus and serves to transmit a record of sensation from a receptor or an instruction to act to an effector : the propagation of an action potential along the length of a neuron

Note: A nerve impulse occurs when a stimulus exceeds a certain threshold resulting in the movement of positively charged sodium ions across the cell membrane of a neuron so that the electrical charges inside and outside the membrane are temporarily reversed.