Final answer:
The structural organization between the motor/sensory and ANS differs in several ways: The sensory-somatic system consists of cranial and spinal nerves transmitting sensory information to the CNS, while the autonomic system has sensory and motor nerves running between the CNS and internal organs. The sensory-somatic system affects skeletal muscle contraction, while the autonomic system targets cardiac and smooth muscle and glandular tissue.
Step-by-step explanation:
The structural organization between the motor/sensory and ANS differs in several ways:
- The motor/sensory nervous system, also known as the sensory-somatic nervous system, consists of cranial and spinal nerves that contain both sensory and motor neurons. Sensory neurons transmit information from the skin, muscles, and sensory organs to the central nervous system (CNS), while motor neurons transmit messages from the CNS to the muscles to cause them to contract.
- On the other hand, the autonomic nervous system (ANS) consists of sensory and motor nerves running between the CNS, mainly the hypothalamus in the brain, and internal organs and glands. Sensory neurons in the ANS detect internal body conditions and send messages to the brain, while motor nerves in the ANS control the contractions of smooth or cardiac muscle and glandular tissue.
- Another important distinction is the target tissues that each system affects. The sensory-somatic system only affects skeletal muscle contraction, while the autonomic system targets cardiac and smooth muscle, as well as glandular tissue.