L3 Flashcards
what are membranes highly permeable to
K+
what is the membranes permeability for Na+ and Ca+
it has a low permeability to Na+ (about 10%) and a very low permeability to Ca+
what is another name for conduction
depolerisation wave
name the structures in the conduction system
sinoatrial node (SA) - origin of the action potential
atrioventricular node (AV)
bundle of hiss
purkinje fibers
cardiomyocytes
where is the AV node located
it boundaries the atria and the ventricles
this is where the fibrocartilaginous structure are in the heart (AV valves)
what is the role of the AV node
it acts as an insulator
describe the conduction pathway
it starts in the SA node. it travels through the atria to the AV node
after it passes through the AV node it passes through the bundle of hiss into the left and right bundle branches
it then travels down the septum, into the purkinje fibers
the purkinje fibers wrap around the heart and going individual cardiomyocytes which all communicate with each other via gap junctions
what is special about cardiomyocytes that allow them to conduct APs
they are interwoven and have branched ends.
the ends contain intercalated discs which allow for cell to cell communication (via gap junctions)
what is a functional syncytium
cells that are very tightly bound together
this means that cardiomyocytes have an all or nothing contraction
at what rate does the SA node generate action potentials
100 min-1
what is the speed of conduction through the atria
0.5m/s
what os the speed of conduction through the AV node
0.05m/s
why is conduction through the AV node slower than it is through the atria
because the delay permits full depolerisation and contraction of the atria before depolerisation and contraction of the ventricles
it lets the ventricles fill with blood before it contracts
what does the contraction of the atria represent
atrial top up
what is the speed of conduction in the bundle of hiss, bundle branches and purkinje fibers
5m/s
this is VERY quick for the distance that it is traveling meaning that the speed of ventricular contraction is mostly dependent on the contraction of the myocardium
what is the speed of conduction in the ventricular myocardium
0.5m/s
what do all the different speeds of conduction allow for
synchronous depolerisation and contraction of all ventricular regions
the speed of conduction spreads slowest in the……
A) SA node
B) Atria
C) AV node
D) Bundle of Hiss
C
what is the difference in action potentials in pacemaker cells compeered to ventricular cells
pacemaker cells are the origin of action potentials. they are located in the SA node and are known as the leaders
ventricular cells (cardiomyocytes) are known as the flowers
what are the 3 phases of the pacemaker cell
phase 4
phase 0
phase 3
explain phase 4 of a pacemaker cell
phase 4 is the equivalent of the cell being at RMP (-60 to -70mV) however the membrane is not resting as it is always becoming more up and down
this is because pacemaker cells have funny Na+ channels which cause a slow influx of Na+
the slow influx of Na into the cell causes T-type Ca2+ channels (TTCC) to open in the later end of phase 4 causing Ca2+ to enter the cell
the cell then reaches threshold which is about -50 to -40 mV
what happens when the pacemaker cell reaches threshold
L-type Ca2+ channels (LTCC) open
what is phase 0 of a pacemaker cell
this phase is also known as the upstroke
L-type Ca2+ channels (LTCC) open
this causes a rapid influx of Ca2+ into the cell
what is phase 3 of a pacemaker cell
this is when the Ca2+ channels close (and the Na+ channels as much as they can) and repolarisation starts to happen SLOWLY because of K+ diffusing through the membrane
why do pacemaker cells have weird phase names
because they are based of what the ventricular cells are doing
how many phases do ventricular cells have
5
what phase is at RMPin a ventricular cell
4