alleryStart learning →Compared with an unmyelinated one, how does a myelinated axon carry a nerve impulse?
ASlower and with less energy used
BFaster and with more energy used
CSlower and with more energy used
DFaster and with less energy used
Answer & Solution
Correct answer: D. Faster and with less energy used
1. In the myelinated stretches the signal travels the way it would along an ordinary conductor, which is fast.
2. No action potential forms in those stretches, so no cell energy is spent there.
3. There is an IR signal loss in the myelin, but the pulse is rebuilt at full voltage in each gap.
4. The result is a nerve impulse that is both faster and cheaper in energy.
5. Myelin being an insulator also shields the axon from cross talk with its neighbours.
6. Any option pairing myelin with a slower impulse contradicts the whole point of the sheath.
_Source: OpenStax College Physics (CC BY 4.0), Ch 20 "Electric Current, Resistance, and Ohm's Law", section Nerve Conduction_
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