PSYC 355 Chapter Notes - Chapter 5: Axon Hillock, Protein Kinase, Curare
6 Dec 2016
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Synaptic transmission: process of information transfer at a synapse. Electrical synapses explain the speed of the transmission. Synapse: specialized junction where one part of the neuronal contacts and communicates with another neuronal or cell type (muscle or gland) Information flows in one direction, from neuron to target cell. First neuron presynaptic + target cell postsynaptic. Allow direct transfer of ionic current from one cell to the next. Occur specialized sites called gap junctions. Gap junctions: between cells in nearly every part of the body + interconnect many non-neuronal cells (epithelial cells, smooth and cardiac muscle cells, liver cells, glia) Gap junctions interconnect neurons function as electrical synapses. At gap junction membranes of 2 cells are separated + narrow gap is spanned by clusters of special proteins connexins. ~20 subtypes of connexins in the brain. 6 subunits combine to form a channel connexon.
