Multiple Sclerosis Part A, Essay Example

Neurons are layered with fatty protective substances called the myelin sheath. The impulses uses the small spaces between the sheaths, nodes, to jump from nerve cell to nerve cell. The function of the myelin is to prevent the electrical impulses from escaping the nerve at the wrong moment.

Normal processes of chemical stimulation of a neurons result in generation of an impulse that passes from the axon of one neuron to the dendrite of another neuron in the synapse. These electrical impulses may travel nonstop from axon to axon, from axon to dendrite, and from dendrite to dendrite.  However, when myelin fibers are destroyed by the immune’s T cells in diseases like Multiple Sclerosis, nerves are unable to conduct electrical impulses along the nerve fibers with speed and precision. Without the myelin sheaths, electrical impulses may not be able travel straight down the nerves to their selected destinations or the impulse may lost into an inappropriate area. Since there is damage to the myelin sheaths, which also serves as protection for the nerves, the nerves have a greater chance of being damaged from outside influences.

The consequences of myelin sheath destruction is deterioration of motor control in skeletal muscles. The muscles receives commands through the nerves from the nervous system. If the nerves are having difficulty delivering their messages because the sheath has been stripped away, then the muscles receive only part of the message or no message at all. And the more sheath that has been damaged or destroyed, then the more likely there will be a loss of motor control ultimately resulting in paralysis of arms, legs, or even breathing.