Objectives 1. Explain the concept of a chemical neurotransmitter and its receptor. 2. Describe the mechanism of neurotransmission at the neuromuscular junction. 3. List the major classes of neurotransmitters and their actions. 4. Explain the difference between ionotropic and metabotropic…
Objectives 1. Describe the structure and function of electrical synapses. 2. Describe the structure of a representative chemical synapse. 3. Explain the quantal nature of neurotransmitter release. 4. Describe the mechanism of transmitter release and the role of calcium. 5.…
Objectives 1. Explain how the Na + pump uses energy from ATP to keep [Na + ] i low and [K + ] i high by transporting Na + and K + against their electrochemical gradients. 2. Explain how Ca…
Objectives 1. Explain how the distribution of lipids and proteins in the cell membrane influences the membrane permeability to hydrophobic and hydrophilic solutes and ions. 2. Differentiate the following mechanisms based on the source of energy driving the process and…
Objectives 1. Recognize that concentration gradients and electrical potential gradients store chemical and electrical potential energy, respectively. 2. Recognize that electrochemical potential energy drives all transport processes. 3. Use the concept of electrochemical potential energy to analyze transport processes. Electrochemical…
Objectives 1. Compare and contrast the properties of voltage-gated Ca 2+ and Na + channels. 2. Describe the mechanism of action of Ca 2+ antagonist drugs, and describe their use as therapeutic agents. 3. Describe the properties of TRP channels.…
Objectives 1. Describe the properties of the voltage clamp, and explain why it is useful for the study of ion channels. 2. Describe the properties of voltage-gated Na + and K + channels. 3. Define the terms “conductance,” “ionic current,”…
Objectives 1. Define passive membrane electrical properties as those due to parameters that are constant near the resting potential of the cell. 2. Explain why membranes behave, electrically, like a resistor in parallel with a capacitor. 3. Explain why open…
Objectives 1. Describe how ion channels function as gated, water-filled pores that selectively increase the permeability of the membrane to certain ions. 2. Describe the function of the selectivity filter in an ion channel. 3. Describe the grouping of ion…
Objectives 1. Recognize that the movement of ions can generate an electrical potential difference across a membrane. 2. Define the concept of the equilibrium potential and apply the Nernst equation to calculate it. 3. Describe how the resting membrane potential…