nodes of Ranvier

node of Ran·vier  (ränvy, rän-vy, rä-)

n. pl. nodes of Ranvier

A constriction in the myelin sheath, occurring at varying intervals along the length of a nerve fiber.

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[After Louis Antoine Ranvier (1835-1922), French histologist.]

Thesaurus

Noun

1.

nodes of Ranvier - small gaps in the myelin sheath of medullated axons Ranvier's nodes medullary sheath, myelin sheath - a layer of myelin encasing (and insulating) the axons of medullated nerve fibers opening, gap - an open or empty space in or between things; "there was a small opening between the trees"; "the explosion made a gap in the wall"