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How do motor ganglia differ from sensory ganglia?

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Diagram of a human figure showing the full nervous system, including the brain, spinal cord, and branching peripheral nerves throughout the body, with labels for each part. — human nervous system The conduction of electrochemical stimuli from sensory receptors in the human nervous system occurs via organized groups of specialized cells, consisting largely of neurons, various neural support cells, and tracts of nerve fibers.

In the human nervous system, ganglia are classified as either sensory or motor based on the type of nerve cell bodies they contain and their functional roles.1

Sensory Ganglia

Sensory ganglia are oval swellings found on the dorsal roots of spinal nerves and the roots of certain cranial nerves. They contain unipolar neurons, which have round or oval cell bodies with a single fiber that bifurcates to reach the periphery and the central nervous system. Notably, there are no synaptic contacts between neurons within sensory ganglia.1

Motor Ganglia

Motor ganglia are associated with the autonomic nervous system and control internal organs. Unlike sensory ganglia, they contain multipolar cell bodies with irregular shapes and multiple processes. These ganglia serve as sites for synaptic communication: preganglionic fibers from the central nervous system enter the ganglia to synapse on these multipolar cells, which then send postganglionic projections to target visceral structures. Depending on their location, they are categorized as paravertebral, prevertebral, or terminal ganglia.1