autonomic nervous system: Quick Facts

Written and fact-checked by

The Information Architects of Encyclopaedia Britannica

Facts

Also Known As	vegetative nervous system • visceral nervous system • ANS

Photos and Videos

Diagram of the autonomic nervous system showing the sympathetic and parasympathetic divisions. The left side illustrates sympathetic nerves branching from the spinal cord to organs and glands, while the right side shows parasympathetic nerves connecting to organs such as the eye, heart, lungs, liver, stomach, intestines, and bladder. Color-coded pathways and labeled ganglia highlight the different nerve routes and target organs in human anatomy.

Diagram showing the organization of the autonomic nervous system, with labeled pathways for parasympathetic and sympathetic nerves, highlighting synapses, neurotransmitters like acetylcholine and norepinephrine, and their receptor types.

autonomic nervous system

How does the autonomic nervous system maintain homeostasis?

See All Videos and Images →

Topics

sympathetic nervous system parasympathetic nervous system enteric nervous system vasomotor system digestive nerve plexus parasympathetic outflow sympathetic outflow preganglionic neuron postganglionic neuron adrenergic nerve fibre nerve

Dig Deeper: More Articles That Discuss This Topic

human nervous system: The autonomic nervous system

Key People

Walter Rudolf Hess

Walter Rudolf Hess

Swiss physiologist