Nerve Impulses Flashcards
What is membrane potential?
It is the difference in electrical charge across the cell membrane.
What is resting potential and when does it occur (mV)?
A neuron is at rest at -70mV, when the inside of the neuron is negative relative to the outside.
What is the job of a sodium-potassium pump at rest?
It uses ATP to move 3 Na ions out of the neuron for every 2 K ions it puts in.
When does action potential occur?
It occurs when a neuron sends information down an axon, away from the cell body.
How does action potential occur?
A stimulus causes the resting potential to move towards 0mV. When depolarization reaches -55mV (the threshold) a neuron will fire an action potential.
What is saltatory conduction?
When the action potential travels down the axon to “jump” from node to node.
What is the pre-synaptic neuron?
The pre-synaptic neuron is the neuron that the impulse leaves.
What is the post-synaptic neuron?
The post-synaptic neuron is the neuron that impulse is going towards.
What is the space between the pre and post synaptic neuron called?
The synaptic cleft (synapse).
What occurs in the synaptic cleft?
Neurotransmitters are released and diffuse across the synaptic cleft to the receptors on the post synaptic cell.
