An
axon (from Greek ἄξων
áxōn, axis), is a long, slender projection of a nerve cell, or
neuron, that typically conducts
electrical impulses away from the neuron's
cell body.
Myelinated axons are known as
nerve fibers. The function of the axon is to transmit information to different neurons, muscles and glands. In certain sensory neurons (
pseudounipolar neurons), such as those for touch and warmth, the electrical impulse travels along an axon from the periphery to the cell body, and from the cell body to the spinal cord along another branch of the same axon. Axon dysfunction causes many inherited and acquired neurological disorders which can affect both the peripheral and central neurons.