ANP 1105 Lecture Notes - Lecture 3: Glatiramer Acetate, Astrocyte, Electrical Resistance And Conductance

• School: University of Ottawa
• Department: Anatomy and Physiology
• Course: ANP 1105
• Professor: Simon Lemaire

Document Summary

Energy is needed to separate opposite charges across a membrane. Energy is liberated when the charges move toward one another. If opposite charges are separated, the system has potential energy. Voltage (v): measure of potential energy generated by separate charges. Potential difference: voltage measured between two points. Current (i): the flow of electrical charge (ions) between two points. Resistance (r): hindrance to charge flow (provided by the plasma membrane) Current is directly proportional to voltage- the greater the voltage(potential difference), the greater the current. There is no net current flow between points that have the same potential. Current is inversely related to resistance, the greater the resistance, the smaller the current. Each ion channel can allow a certain type of ion to pass (i. e a potassium channel can only allow potassium ions to pass through) Membrane channels are large proteins that contain many subunits. Some of the channels are leakage or nongated channels, which are always open.