Which part of the nervous system serves as communication lines among sensory organs, the brain and spinal cord, and glands or muscles?

• A. Peripheral Nervous System
• B. Central Nervous System
• C. Autonomic Nervous System
• D. Somatic Nervous System

Answer: (A)

Focus on how signals travel between sensing your environment and acting on it. The peripheral nervous system is the network of nerves outside the brain and spinal cord that carries sensory information from receptors in the body to the brain and spinal cord, and then carries motor commands from the brain to muscles and to glands. It essentially serves as the communication lines linking sensory organs, the central processing centers, and the body's effectors.

The central nervous system—the brain and spinal cord—processes and interprets those signals rather than serving as the full pathway to every organ. The autonomic and somatic systems are subdivisions of the peripheral nervous system: autonomic handles involuntary functions like digestion and heart rate, while somatic handles voluntary movements. But the overall connection between senses, the CNS, and glands or muscles is provided by the peripheral nervous system.