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In addition, a synapse serves as a junction where both the transmission and processing of information occur, making it a vital means of communication between neurons. [10] At the synapse, the plasma membrane of the signal-passing neuron (the presynaptic neuron) comes into close apposition with the membrane of the target (postsynaptic) cell.
An electrical synapse, or gap junction, is a mechanical and electrically conductive synapse, a functional junction between two neighboring neurons. The synapse is formed at a narrow gap between the pre- and postsynaptic neurons known as a gap junction .
This causes the synapse to be a long-term potentiation (LTP) or long-term depression (LTD). The former is the strengthening of the synapse between two neurons if the postsynaptic spike temporally follows immediately after the presynaptic spike. Latter is the case if it is reverse, i.e., the presynaptic spike occurs after the postsynaptic spike.
There are two different kinds of synapses present within the human brain: chemical and electrical. Chemical synapses are by far the most prevalent and are the main player involved in excitatory synapses. Electrical synapses, the minority, allow direct, passive flow of electric current through special intercellular connections called gap ...
In addition, a transistor can serve to amplify an existing current in a circuit. In effect, the gatekeeper neuron acts as the transistor of a gated synapse by modulating the transmission of the signal between the pre-synaptic and post-synaptic neurons. In a model gated synapse, the gate is either open or closed by default.
Neurons communicate with one another via synapses and affect the timing of spike trains in the post-synaptic neurons. Depending on the properties of the connection, such as the coupling strength, time delay and whether coupling is excitatory or inhibitory , the spike trains of the interacting neurons may become synchronized . [ 37 ]
In a neuron, synaptic vesicles (or neurotransmitter vesicles) store various neurotransmitters that are released at the synapse. The release is regulated by a voltage-dependent calcium channel. Vesicles are essential for propagating nerve impulses between neurons and are constantly recreated by the cell.
The enhancement of synaptic potential would mean that fewer would be needed to have the same or larger effect, which could have far-reaching medical uses. The research indicates that this long term potentiation or in the case of inhibitory synapses, long term depression of the synapse occurs after prolonged stimulation of two neurons at the ...