To wrap up the muscle series we are looking at neuromuscular junctions - the synapses between motor neurones and muscle fibre cells. This article will relate closely to the synapse article, but there are some differences between cholinergic synapses and neuromuscular junctions. Neuromuscular junction structure There are three main differences between neuromuscular junctions and a … Read more
Wave of Depolarisation – Nervous Communication Ep 4
Last time we looked at an action potential happening in a section of a neurone cell membrane. The membrane was depolarised and repolarised. However, that depolarisation must travel along the whole length of a neurone in the right direction. Today we will look at how an action potential travels in a wave of depolarisation. The … Read more
Action Potential – Nervous Communication Ep 3
In the last article we learnt that neurone cell membranes are polarised at rest (when they are not being stimulated). However, when a stimulus is detected a nerve impulse must be sent along the neurone. Today we will look at the sequence of events that happens during an action potential and how ion channels bring … Read more
Neurones and Resting Potential – Nervous Communication Ep 2
The nervous system communicates information by sending nerve impulses. In the last article we saw how impulses are generated at receptors in response to a stimulus. Now the impulses must be transmitted by neurones. In this article we will look at some of the different types of neurones found in the nervous system, and see … Read more