Week 5 Flashcards
Are ion channels always open?
No they can open and close in response to different signals such as voltage, chemical messengers and neurotransmitters, or heat.
What is the general resting potential of a cell?
Negative
With NA+ outside the cell and K+ inside the cell
And Cl- and Ca2+ outside the cell…
Two ions that depolarize a cell?
Na+ and Ca++
Both are in higher concentration outside a cell so when they flow into a cell the voltage goes up.
2 ions that hyperpolarize a cell?
Cl- and K+
K+ is in higher concentration inside a cell so when it flows out the cell becomes more negative
Cl- is in greater concentration outside the cell so when it flows into a cell it becomes more negative
What is hyperpolarizong a cell?
Making it more negative inside
What is depolarizing a cell?
Making it more positive inside.
Three questions to ask when figuring out which way the membrane potential is shifting?
- What ion?
- What direction is it flowing?
- What charge is it carrying?
What is in highest concentrations inside a cell?
K+
What is in high concentration outside the cell?
Na+
Ca2+
Cl-
What is hyperkalemia?
Elevated extra cellular K+
This makes the difference between outside positive charge and normal inside negative charge bigger…
Ie changes the resting potential
Depolarization of the membrane causing alterations in and even failure of action potentials to generate a response in muscles and heart
What are some permeable drugs?
Aspirin, steroid hormones, local anesthetics
How is a cell balanced?
When K+ gradient balances the force of it wanting to leave the cell versus the need for the charge to be zero.
K+ is in higher concentration in the cell and wants to leave- chemical force outward
But The inside of the cell is negative and thus attracts the positively charge K+, electrical force inward
When the two balance the cell is slightly negative and most the K+ is inside the cell.
What happens in depolarization?
The cell becomes more positive
What happens in hyperpolarization?
The cell becomes more negative
What happens when Na+ channels open?
Depolarization
More positive in cell
What happens when K+ channels open?
Hyper polarized more negative inside and positive outside
What happens when non-selective cation channels open?
Will equilibrate based on balance of charges of Na+ and K+ going in and outside
What happens when K+ channels close?
Depolarization more positive in cell
What happens when Cl- channels close?
Depolarization more positive in the cellular cycle
How do anesthetics work?
They disrupt the action potential signals signals
Such as locals that block Na+ channels, puffer toxins also block them
Lidocaine makes Na channels inactive
True of false
Action potentials are either on or off and depend on a threshold and once they reach the threshold the shape is the same.
True
How fast can action potentials propagate?
Up to 100 meters a second
Can a higher injected current create a stronger response ie more action potentials once the threshold is reached?
Yes a stronger current can generate multiple action potentials in series
How does an action potential work on Na channels? Ie order of operations
Depolarization
Na+ channel opens
Na+ enters the cell
Which in turn triggers more depolarization and more Na channels opening and more Na+ entering
This is a positive feedback loop
What is the Hodgkins cycle?
The positive feedback loop of Na+ channels
How to K+ channels respond to a depolarizing stimulus?
Depolarization ie positive charge
Opens K+ channels and charge flows out bringing cell back to negative.
This repolararizes cell and brings it back to negative charge and channels shut
What is threshold and how is it triggered?
When enough of a signal/voltage change causes enough channels to open to trigger the positive feedback loop which continues till all the channels have opened
How is a cell depolarizer after and action potential ie how does the voltage return to resting state?
Na+ channels switch to an inactive and closed state where they can’t be triggered again in the depolarizing state of the cell
They only reset when when returns to resting value
And K+ channels open more slowly than Na channels so they allow charge to resets in cell by leaking positive charge out of cell
How do action potentials propagate down an axon?
As a wave of depolarization
The leading edge provides the initial depolarization to open Na+ channels that cause each new section to reach threshold just before the next section
Two factors that control speed in action potential propagation in non-myelinated axons?
- Axon diameter
2. How much current or charge is needed to depolarize the membrane
How can speed of an action potential be sped up?
By wrapping the nerve in myelin which block Na+ channels
This makes it so that areas in myelin don’t depolarize and the potential travels from one node of Ranvier where Na+ channels are to another….
K+ channels can form in Myelin