Bipolar nerve cell

Section (with nucleus) of a bipolar nerve cell

Morphological differentiation of nerve cells:
1 unipolar nerve cell
2 bipolar nerve cell
3 multipolar nerve cell
4 pseudounipolar nerve cell

A bipolar neuron or bipolar cell is a neuron with two at opposite poles of the cell formed projections , a dendrite and an neurites . If both are structured very similarly, one also speaks of a dendritic or neuritic axon .

As highly specialized sensor neurons, bipolar cells represent the receptor cells of the sense of smell ( olfactory cells ) and the sense of sight ( photoreceptors ). Other bipolar nerve cells convey the signals of the receptor cells as part of the sensory information transmission, including the sense of taste , touch , hearing and balance .

Overall, they occur most frequently as the second neuron of the retina (see bipolar cells of the retina ) or in the ganglia of the vestibulocochlear nerve (auditory balance nerve ). In the absence of specific information, the term usually refers to the cells that make up the retina.

Individual evidence

1. ↑ Clemens Cherry: Biopsychologie from A to Z . Springer textbook, ISBN 3540396039 , p. 37 Lemma “ Bipolar cells”.
2. ↑ Benninghoff: Macroscopic and microscopic anatomy of humans, Vol. 3. Nervous system, skin and sensory organs , Verlag Urban & Schwarzenberg, 1985, ISBN 3-541-00264-6 , p. 4.
3. ↑ Hans G Liebich: Functional histology of domestic mammals and birds, textbook and color atlas for study and practice + histology online: the image database with the plus , Schattauer; Edition: 5th, completely revised. 2009 edition (October 20, 2009), page 111.