Question

38.Describe the interaction between a presynaptic and postsynaptic cell. what leads to an IPSP versus a subthreshold EPSP in the postsynaptic cell. What is one mechanism that could lead to a supra threshold EPSP in the postsynaptic cell.

Answer 1

Solution:

Neurons communicate with one another at junctions called synapses. ... At a chemical synapse, an action potential triggers the presynaptic neuron to release neurotransmitters. These molecules bind to receptors on the postsynaptic cell and make it more or less likely to fire an action potential.

When an action potential reaches the axon terminals, voltage-gated Ca2+ channels in the membrane of the synaptic end bulb open. The concentration of Ca2+ increases inside the end bulb, and the Ca2+ ion associates with proteins in the outer surface of neurotransmitter vesicles. The Ca2+ facilitates the merging of the vesicle with the presynaptic membrane so that the neurotransmitter is released through exocytosis into the small gap between the cells, known as the synaptic cleft.

Once in the synaptic cleft, the neurotransmitter diffuses the short distance to the postsynaptic membrane and can interact with neurotransmitter receptors. Receptors are specific for the neurotransmitter, and the two fit together like a key and lock. One neurotransmitter binds to its receptor and will not bind to receptors for other neurotransmitters, making the binding a specific chemical event.

Although the particulars of postsynaptic action can be complex, a simple rule distinguishes postsynaptic excitation from inhibition: An EPSP has a reversal potential more positive than the action potential threshold, whereas an IPSP has a reversal potential more negative than threshold.

the summation of EPSPs and IPSPs by a postsynaptic neuron permits a neuron to integrate the electrical information provided by all the inhibitory and excitatory synapses acting on it at any moment. Whether the sum of active synaptic inputs results in the production of an action potential depends on the balance between excitation and inhibition. If the sum of all EPSPs and IPSPs results in a depolarization of sufficient amplitude to raise the membrane potential above threshold, then the postsynaptic cell will produce an action potential. Conversely, if inhibition prevails, then the postsynaptic cell will remain silent. Normally, the balance between EPSPs and IPSPs changes continually over time, depending on the number of excitatory and inhibitory synapses active at a given moment and the magnitude of the current at each synapse. Summation is therefore a neurotransmitter-induced tug-of-war between all excitatory and inhibitory postsynaptic currents; the outcome of the contest determines whether or not a postsynaptic neuron becomes an active element in the neural circuit to which it belongs.