As a charity, we rely on volunary contributions to provide this information. The brain, structure and function The brain, together with the spinal cord, makes up the nerve control centre which controls our body's functions. The basic cell of the brain is the nerve cell or neurone, and there are about 40 billion of these in a brain. You are born with this amount and unlike other cells they do not replace themselves. In fact, through adult life there is a gradual decrease in the number of these cells.
Nerve impulses are similar to electrical currents and can be switched on or off by the body.
The nerve cells are supported by a different family of cells called the glial cells. These are astrocytes, oligodendrocytes and ependymal cells. It is made up of two halves or hemispheres. Each lobe controls a different range of activities. This is the back part of the brain concerned with balance and co-ordination.