Chemical Signaling by Neurotransmitters and Hormones Flashcards
What are the three types of synaptic connections?
- Axodendritic
- Axosomatic
- Axoaxonic
What are the most common synapses in the brain?
Axodendritic
What’s an axodendritic synapse?
An axon terminal from the presynaptic neuron communicates with a dendrite of the postsynaptic cell
What are axosomatic synapses?
Synapses between a nerve terminal and a nerve cell body
What are axoaxonic synapses?
One axon synapses on the terminal of another axon
Neuromuscular junction
The connection point between a neuron and a muscle
Neuromuscular junction
The connection point between a neuron and a muscle
What are some amino acids?
- Glutamate
- GABA
- Glycine
What are some monoamines?
- Dopamine
- Norepinephrine
- Serotonin
Dopamine is what kind of neurotransmitter?
Monoamine
Serotonin is what kind of neurotransmitter?
Monoamine
Norepinephrine is what kind of neurotransmitter?
Monoamine
GABA is what kind of neurotransmitter?
Amino acid
Glycine is what kind of neurotransmitter?
Amino acid
Glutamate is what kind of neurotransmitter?
Amino acid
What are some functions of amino acids?
- Serve as building blocks of proteins
- Metabolic things
What is the largest group of “nonclassical” neurotransmitters?
Neuropeptides
Where are neurotransmitters manufactured?
Anywhere in the cell (except for neuropeptides)
What is the most recently discovered group of neurotransmitters?
Gaseous transmitters
Exocytosis
A fusion of the vesicle membrane with the membrane of the axon terminal
Active zones
Specialized regions near the postsynaptic cell, which stain darkly on the electron micrograph
What is required for exocytosis to take place?
A vesicle must be transported to an active zone, and then “dock” to the active zone
Vesicle recycling
The continuous release and reformation of vesicles
Neurotransmitter release is regulated by what different mechanisms?
- Rate of cell firing
- Probability of transmitter release from the terminal
- Presence of autoreceptors on axon terminals or cell bodies and dendrites
What happens when a neuron is rapidly firing action potentials?
It will release much more transmitter
What are the two different types of autoreceptors?
- Terminal autoreceptors
- Somatodendritic autoreceptors