resting potential - electrical potential across the cell membrane of a neurone when it is not transmitting an action potential, -70mV - normal value of resting potential; partly maintained by sodium-potassium pumps, voltage-gated channel protein - a channel protein that opens or closes in response to changes in potential difference across the membrane, depolarisation - reversal of the resting potential from negatively charged to positively charged, repolarisation - returning the potential difference acrooss the membrane of a neurone to negatively charged, threshold potential - critical potential difference across the membrane of a sensory receptor or neuron for an action potential to be initiated, refractory period - a period of time during which a neurone is recovering from an action potential, saltatory conduction - movement of an action potential along a myelinated axon in which it "jumps" from one node of Ranvier to the next, synaptic cleft - very small gap between two neurones at a synapse, synapse - a point at which two neurones meet but do not touch, neurotransmitter - a chemical released at synapses to transmit impulses between neurones or a neuron and muscle fiber, presynaptic neurone - neurone ending at a synapse from which neurotransmitter is released when an action potential arrives, postsynaptic neurone - neurone on the opposite side of a synapse to the neurone in which the action potential arrives, acetylcholine (ACh) - a type of neurotransmitter which is released by cholinergic synapses, cholinergic synapse - a synapse at which the transmitter substance is ACh, receptor protein - protein on postsynaptic membrane that responds to the binding of a neurotransmitter, voltage-gated calcium ion channel proteins - channel proteins in the presynaptic membranes that responds to depolarisation and opens to allow calcium ions to diffuse into the cell,

Nerve impulse and Synapses

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