go to homepage

Sympathetic nervous system

Alternative Titles: orthosympathetic nervous system, thoracolumbar nervous system


    Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc.

Learn about this topic in these articles:


major reference

The human nervous system.

autonomic nervous system

...system that controls and regulates the internal organs without any conscious recognition or effort by the organism. The autonomic nervous system comprises two antagonistic sets of nerves, the sympathetic and para sympathetic nervous systems. The sympathetic nervous system connects the internal organs to the brain by spinal nerves. When stimulated, these nerves prepare the organism for...

body temperature

The human nervous system.


Penn & Teller performing in Las Vegas, 2007.
...reasoning; unlike reasoning, they cannot “change direction” at a moment’s notice. To the physiologist, this is self-evident since emotions operate through the genetically old, massive sympathetic nervous system and its allied hormones, acting on the whole body, while the processes of conceptual thinking are confined to the neocortex at the roof of the brain. Common experience...

psychogalvanic reflex

The PGR is mediated by the sympathetic division of the autonomic nervous system. It is a part of the general arousal or activation pattern of physiological responses that mobilizes and fits the person for effective reaction in an emergency. In addition, parts of the brain’s premotor cerebral cortex appear to have a role in producing it. The consensus is that the PGR is associated with...

cardiac muscle

...is innervated by sympathetic and parasympathetic nerves, which have a profound effect on the resting potential and the rate of diastolic depolarization in the SA nodal region. The activity of the sympathetic nervous system may be increased by the activation of the sympathetic nerves innervating the heart or by the secretion of epinephrine and norepinephrine from the adrenal gland. This...

cardiovascular system

The heart is composed of cardiac muscle cells.
Nervous control of the heart is maintained by the parasympathetic fibres in the vagus nerve (parasympathetic) and by the sympathetic nerves. The vagus nerve is the cardiac inhibitor, and the sympathetic nerves are the cardiac excitors. Stimulation of the vagus nerve depresses the rate of impulse formation and atrial contractility and thereby reduces cardiac output and slows the rate of the...



Prozac pills.
...processes of the glands, large internal organs, cardiac muscle, and blood vessels. It is divided functionally and anatomically into the sympathetic and the parasympathetic systems, which are associated with the fight-or-flight response or with rest and energy conservation, respectively.

role of catecholamine

In cells the stimulatory effects of epinephrine are mediated through the activation of a second messenger known as cAMP (cyclic adenosine monophosphate). The activation of this molecule results in the stimulation of cell-signaling pathways that act to increase heart rate, to dilate blood vessels in skeletal muscle, and to break down glycogen to glucose in the liver.
Under ordinary circumstances, more epinephrine than norepinephrine is released from the adrenal medulla. In contrast, more norepinephrine is released from the sympathetic nervous system elsewhere in the body. In physiological terms, a major action of the hormones of the adrenal medulla and the sympathetic nervous system is to initiate a rapid, generalized fight-or-flight response. This...

human digestive system

The human digestive system as seen from the front.
...nervous system, the sympathetic and the parasympathetic. The parasympathetic nerve supply regulates secretion by the acinar cells and causes the blood vessels to dilate. Functions regulated by the sympathetic nerves include secretion by the acinar cells, constriction of blood vessels, and, presumably, contraction of the myoepithelial cells. Normally secretion of saliva is constant, regardless...

human excretory system

The nerves to the urinary bladder belong to the sympathetic and the parasympathetic divisions of the autonomic nervous system. The sympathetic nerve fibres come from the hypogastric plexus of nerves that lie in front of the fifth lumbar vertebra. Sympathetic nerves carry to the central nervous system the sensations associated with distention of the bladder and are believed to be involved in...
...to blood flow. Evidence indicates that in the kidneys the greater part of the total resistance occurs in the glomerular arterioles. The muscular coats of the arterioles are well supplied with sympathetic vasoconstrictor fibres (nerve fibres that induce narrowing of the blood vessels), and there is also a small parasympathetic supply from the vagus and splanchnic nerves that induces...
...channels convey impulses from stretch receptors in the bladder wall to higher centres, permitting cognizance of the state of distension of the organ and stimulating the desire to micturate. (2) The sympathetic nerves stimulate closure of the ureteric and internal urethral orifices and contraction of the internal sphincter, and their action on the detrusor is inhibitory; i.e., the effect...

respiratory systems

The pleurae, the airways, and the vessels are innervated by afferent and efferent fibres of the autonomic nervous system. Parasympathetic nerve fibres from the vagus nerve (10th cranial nerve) and sympathetic branches of the sympathetic nerve trunk meet around the stem bronchi to form the pulmonary autonomic nerve plexus, which penetrates into the lung along the bronchial and vascular walls....
sympathetic nervous system
  • MLA
  • APA
  • Harvard
  • Chicago
You have successfully emailed this.
Error when sending the email. Try again later.

Keep Exploring Britannica

default image when no content is available
subarachnoid hemorrhage
bleeding into the space between the two innermost protective coverings surrounding the brain, the pia mater and the arachnoid mater. A subarachnoid hemorrhage most often occurs as the result of significant...
animal social behaviour
acid–base reaction
quantum mechanics
launch vehicle
Margaret Mead
game theory
Zeno’s paradox, illustrated by Achilles racing a tortoise.
foundations of mathematics
chemical analysis
A piece of compressed cocaine powder.
drug use
Email this page