Action Potential Initiation and Conduction in （动作电位起始和传导）.pdfVIP

Action Potential Initiation and Conduction in Axons 23 Action Potential Initiation and Conduction in Axons J H Caldwell, University of Colorado, Aurora, CO, USA described by Hodgkin and Huxley for the squid ã 2009 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved. giant axon, and this process holds in both the central nervous system (CNS) and peripheral nervous system (PNS) of both vertebrates and invertebrates. The action potential is generated by the opening and Introduction subsequent inactivation of voltage-gated sodium channels and, with a slight delay, the opening of volt- Transmission of electrical signals in biological sys- age-gated potassium channels. This ionic interplay of tems operates under constraints imposed by the materi- opening and closing of sodium and potassium chan- als used to build the conducting pathways. The conduction medium in nerves is a membrane-enclosed nels is present in such diverse phyla that it must have dilute salt solution rather than a metal wire, for exam- evolved hundreds of millions of years ago. This con- servation of the molecular foundation of the action ple, as in macroscopic physical systems. Axons have potential has additional complexities that are not yet been compar