When a neuron is 'sensitized,' what is true?

When a neuron is 'sensitized,' what is true?

• A. It Is In a Lesion State
• B. The Nervous System as a Whole Is Inhibited
• C. It Will Not Fire
• D. It Fires More Easily

Answer: (D)

When a neuron is sensitized, its excitability increases. This means the neuron has a lower activation threshold and responds more readily to stimuli that it would normally ignore or respond to only with a stronger input. In practice, this makes it fire more easily in response to the same input, or even to weaker inputs, which is why the statement that it fires more easily is true. The other ideas don’t fit because sensitization is about heightened responsiveness, not a lesion state or global inhibition of the nervous system. It’s not that the neuron won’t fire; it’s that it fires more readily.

When a neuron is sensitized, its excitability increases. This means the neuron has a lower activation threshold and responds more readily to stimuli that it would normally ignore or respond to only with a stronger input. In practice, this makes it fire more easily in response to the same input, or even to weaker inputs, which is why the statement that it fires more easily is true.

The other ideas don’t fit because sensitization is about heightened responsiveness, not a lesion state or global inhibition of the nervous system. It’s not that the neuron won’t fire; it’s that it fires more readily.