PSY 3061 Lecture Notes - Lecture 4: Resting Potential, Axon Terminal, Membrane Potential
Document Summary
Two classes of nervous tissue: nerve cells (neurons, excitable tissue (yellow, glial cells (glia; greek = glue, support neuronal structure and function (green) Conduction zone (axon) is area where there is signal conduction. Area of cell that links axon to soma. Soma is locus of signal input through dendrites: receives signals from neighboring cells, transmitted down axon through axon terminals. Leads to electrochemical information transfer to neighboring cells. Depolarization: event that causes cell to become briefly positively charged. Below negative charge of resting potential: will not be able to generate another action potential because cell becomes so negative. When both reference and recording electrodes placed in bath containing neuron, should be no charge. If recording electrode is placed inside neuron, there will be a negative charge recorded. Ions have different charges: sodium-potassium pump, mechanism to regulate relative concentrations of na and k inside and outside of cell, regulates resting potential.
