Provided that neurons are diverse in their roles as well as their shapes and sizes, not all of them have parts of the exact same size. Generally, a neuron can be broken down into its four main components: the soma, dendrites, axon, and axon terminals.
The soma of the neuron is essentially the neuron’s body. Due to the nucleus’ being located within it, the majority of protein production gets done right here.
As you may have seen in other answers, a neuron also has input points, which are known as dendrites. In the diagram, they are the protruding branch filaments on the left hand side of the neuron. To be simple, the dendrites are responsible for transmitting electrical signals, from the axon of other neurons, to the soma. This electrical transmission is done through points known as synapses found in the axon terminal of a neighboring neuron.
To elaborate more on the axon, it is the extensive fiber that carries nerve signals emitted by the soma. The signals first enter the axon from the soma at a point which is referred to as the axon hill, where the action potential is generated, or simply a nerve impulse that travels across and affects the structural polarity of the neuron.
They will then be transmitted to the neuron’s very own axon terminal, the branches on the right hand of the diagram, which are interconnected in a network with more neurons at their dendrites.
A neutron in its rest state is negatively charged, as the axon interior is roughly 70 mV more negative than the exterior.
So, to briefly summarize and put things in order: dendrites, the protruding branches on the left hand of the diagram, will receive the electrical signals from the synapses of a nearby neuron. These electrical signals will be transmitted to the soma, the “body” of the neuron, responsible for creating proteins, which contains the nucleus (the ellipse in the diagram). From here, these signals will be transmitted across the axon, the long filament seen above, as a nerve impulse that affects the polarities of the membrane as it travels through. It will then be sent to the axon terminal at the end of the cell, which forms a gap with the dendrites of neighboring neurons. This gap, as aforementioned, is known as the synapse.
Thanks,
Eddie