The axon allows the neuron to send messages to other nerve cells. Each neuron has only one axon, but this may have numerous branches which connect the cell to many other. Cells can be classified based on the length of their axons. Golgi Type I neurons have long axons while those of Golgi Type II cells are short. Axons arise from an area on the cell body of the neuron called the axon hillock.
Most axons form many branches as they extend away from the soma.
At its end, each axonal branch divides into a number of telodendria . The boutones terminaux or boutones de passage , which contain neurotransmitters, are located on the telodendria. Myelin Many of the axons in the central and peripheral nervous systems are covered at regular intervals with a fatty insulating substance called myelin. The segments of the axon which lie between areas of myelin and are therefore in direct contact with extracellular fluid are called the Nodes of Ranvier . Myelin coating increases the speed with which an axon can transmit messages.