Synaptic and Neurojunctional

Transmission
Lecture 5
 A synapse
•Is a specialized structure between excitable
cells that permits electrical communication
between cells.
•Can occur between a neuron and a neuron and
between a neuron and a skeletal muscle fiber
•The term “synapse” means joined together and
refers to the point of contact or near contact
between neurons.
 Types of synapses
• Synapses are divide into two types depending
on their nature of transmission across them.
• 1) Electrical synapse
• 2) Chemical synapse
 Electrical synapse
• Are so named because action potentials are tr
ansmitted from one cell to the other via gap ju
nctions in form of electrical current
• By means of gap junctions an action potential
that originates from one cell can easily cross in
to the next cell.
• This type of synapse is common in invertebrat
e animals and very rare in the human Central
Nerveous System(CNS).
 Chemical synapse
• Is the most common in the human CNS.
• They involve a chemical substance known as a
neurotransmitter in the transfer of
information
• This substance has to be released from one
neuron ,the presynaptic neuron and has to
bind to the receptors on the postsynaptic
neuron and bring about a response
 Cont’d
• Chemical transmission of information from a
nerve to muscle cells is also via a chemical
synapse known as a neuromuscular junction
or myoneural junction.
• The presynaptic cell is separated from the
postsynaptic by a synaptic cleft.
• With the most common type of synapse
occuring between the axon of a presynaptic
cell and the dendrite or cell body of the
postsynaptic cell
 Cont’d
• So depending upon the site of the synapse on
the postsynapitc cell synapses are referred to
as axodendritic, axosomatic or axoaxonic.
• The manner of termination on the
postsynaptic cell may also differ whereby a
single axon neuron may terminate on a single
neuron or multiple neurons
 Structure of a chemical synapse
• The most important feature of the chemical
synapse is the presence of membrane vesicles
found in the presynaptic cells.
• These vesicles carry neurotransmitters that
are released during synaptic transmission and
either stimulate or inhibit the postsynaptic
cell.
Structure of a synapse
Many forms of synapses
Detailed structure
 Transmission process
• When an AP of a presynaptic cell reaches the
membrane of the synaptic knobs, it
depolarizes this membrane region.
• Depolarization in turn leads to the opening of
the Ca++ ion channels which allow the influx
of Ca++ ion into the presynatic cell
 Cont’d
• This causes the vesicle( containing the
neurotransmitter) membranes to fuse with
the presynaptic membrane.
• When the area of fusion breaks down it
releases the contained neurotransmitter into
the cleft.
 Cont’d
• After diffusion across the cleft, the
neurotransmitter chemical combines with
receptor sites on the postsynaptic membrane.
• Combination of the neurotransmitter with the
receptor causes either stimulation or
inhibition of the postsynaptic cell.
 Cont’d
• Therefore information is transferred from cell
to cell by these chemical transmitters.
• Its important to note that with the chemical
synapse, the same action potential does not
move from one cell to the next
• Instead an AP of the presynaptic cell causes
another action potential to be produced or
blocked in the postsynaptic cell.
 Characteristics of synaptic transmission

• 1 ) Synaptic delay- Once the presynaptic cell is

stimulated and the activity of the postsynaptic
“partner” is observed ,a delay can be seen
between the activities of the two cells.
• This is because about 0.5 milliseconds elapses
between the time at which the action
potential of the presynaptic cell reaches its
axon terminals and the time at which the
postsynaptic cell is depolarized.
 Cont’d
• Therefore this slight delay in time called the
synaptic delay represents the time required
for the transmitter chemical to be released
from the presynaptic terminals and diffuse
across the synaptic cleft to the postsynaptic
membrane recetors and cause depolarization
 Cont’d
• 2 ) One way conduction-
• We know that an action potential can be
propagated in more than one direction in one
neuron
• However the structure of chemical synapses
only allows conduction in one direction from
neuron to neuron
 Cont’d
• This one way conduction is possible because
only the presynaptic axon terminals have
transmitter vesicles and the postsynaptic cell
have none.
• Hence chemical transfer of excitation occurs
only from a presynaptic axon to a postsynaptic
dendrite or cell body and not in the reverse.
 Cont’d
• 3 ) Synaptic fatigue- The release of
transmitter substance and the excitation of a
postsynaptic neuron is not guaranteed every
time a presynaptic cell conducts an AP.
• If a presynaptic neuron is repeatedly
stimulated at relatively high frequency, the
response of the postsynaptic neuron
eventually ceases. This is known as synaptic
fatigue
 Cont’d
• It results from the depletion of the transmitter
substance from the axon terminals of the
presynaptic neuron.
• This failure of synaptic transmission as a result
of fatigue is an important mechanism to
reduce the extent of excitability with the
Nervous System.
 Post synaptic potentials
• The resultant response of the postsynaptic cell
depends on the transmitter substance which is
released by the presynaptic nerve cell.
• The effect on the postsynaptic membrane can
either be inhibitory or excitatory.
• These effects on the postsynaptic cell
membrane are referred to as postsynaptic
potentials
 Cont’d
• Whether the postsynaptic cell is excited or
inhibited depends on two factors;
• a) The type of transmitter chemical released
• b) The nature of the postsynaptic membrane
receptors
• However note that a presynaptic neuron
releases only one type of transmitter
chemical but the postsynaptic neuron has
both types of receptors-excitatory and
inhibitory.
 Excitatory Postsynaptic potentials
• When an AP causes the release of a chemical
transmitter in the presynaptic neuron the
binding of the transmitter on the postsynaptic
membrane cause a partial depolarization of
the membrane and when threshold is reached
an action potential is generated.
• Therefore this temporary change in resting
potential which makes the cell more easily
excitable is called excitatory postsynaptic
potential
 Cont’d
• The Excitatory Post-Synaptic Potential is the re
sult of the release of a small amount of excitat
ory neurotransmitter by the presynaptic cell.
• This excitatory neurotransmitter released bind
s to the receptors on the postsynaptic cell me
mbrane and opens some Na+ ion gates.
• And when threshold is reached an Action Pote
ntial is more likely to be produced.
 Inhibitory Postsynaptic potentials
• Just as the EPSP makes a neuron more easily
excited, transmitters released by presynaptic
neurons can make the postsynaptic
membrane more difficult to depolarize
• An inhibitory transmitter appears to affect the
gates through which K+ and Cl- ion pass.
• By opening K+ ion channels ,positive charge
(K+) leave cell and negative Cl- enter and
make the inside more negative than RMP.
 cont’d
• The resulting effect is a hyperpolarization
• In this way the membrane potential is moved
further away from threshhold
• And such a hyperpolariztion effect makes it
more difficult to excite the membrane .
• The resultant potential is known as Inhibitory
postsynaptic potential.
Summation of Postsynaptic potentials
• As seen earlier the AP of a single presynaptic
neuron usually does not release enough
transmitter substance to cause an AP in a
postsynaptic neuron.
• So depending on the transmitter substance
and receptor it will produce either an
inhibitory or excitatory effect on the
postsynaptic membrane
 Cont’d
• However most of the time these postsynaptic
potentials reach a level that is just below
threshold.
• However several of these postsynaptic
potentials can be summed up or added
together to reach threshold level at which a
postsynaptic neuron responds with an action
potential. This Is phenomenon is referred to
as summation.
 Cont’d
• Summation may either be
• a) Temporal or
• b) Spatial
• Temporal summation occurs when two or
more action potentials in a single presynaptic
neuron occur in a rapid succession so that the
resultant postsynaptic potentials overlap in
time.
 Cont’d
• Spatial summation occurs when many
presynaptic terminals release transmitters at
the same time
• The two postsynaptic potentials are then
added
• If the two inputs are EPSPs they will
depolarize the postsynaptic cell about twice as
much as either input alone
• And if one input is an EPSP and the other an
IPSP they tend to cancel each other.
 Facilitation
• If a single EPSP or a series of EPSPs does not
reach the threshold firing level for a
postsynaptic neuron, that neuron is said to be
facilitated.
• Facilitation simply means that the membrane
potential is close enough to threshold level
that an additional EPSP will result in an AP.
 Neuromuscular transmission
• Occurs between axons of motorneurons and
skeletal muscle.
• The neurotransmitter released from the
presynaptic terminal is Acetylcholine and the
postsynaptic membrane contains nicotinic
receptors.
• Therefore the synapse between these motor
neurons and skeletal muscle fibers are called
neuromuscular or myoneural junctions or
motor end plates
 Steps involved at the Neuromuscular junction

• 1 ) An AP arrives at the presynaptic motor

axon terminal
• 2 ) Causes an increase in the Ca++
permeability and thereby an influx of Ca++
into the the axon terminal
• 3 ) The increased Ca++ concentration in the
axon terminal causes the synaptic vesicles to
fuse with plasma membrane and to empty the
Nt (Ach) into the synaptic cleft by exocytosis.
 Cont’d
• 4 ) Ach then diffuses across the synaptic cleft
and binds to specific receptors proteins on the
surface of the muscle plasma membrane of
the motor end plate.
• 5 ) This causes an increase in the permeability
of the postjucntional membrane to Na+ and
K+ resulting in a depolarization of the end
plate region
 Cont’d
• 6 ) The depolarization spreads to the areas
adjacent to the end plate and initiation of an
action potential take place.
 Neurotransmitters and Neuromodulators

• Refer to hand out to be given.

• Major Neurotransmitters to look at
• Acethylcholine-Excitatory
• Norepinephrine-Excitatory
• Epinephrine-Excitatory
• Dopamine-Inhibitoy
• Serotonin-Inhibitoy
 Cont’d
• Substance P-Excitatory
• Glycine-Inhibitoy
• Gamma-amino butyric acid (GABA)-Inhibitoy
• Glutamate-Excitatory
• Aspartate-Excitatory
• Enkephalins,beta-endorphin-Excitatory
 Cont’d
• Categorize into excitatory and inhibitory
• Look at site of synthesis
• Their site of function.