Find-Health-Articles.com - making medical research available to everyone

Synapses
Research News and Information

Definition of 'Synapses'

Specialized junctions at which a neuron communicates with a target cell. At classical synapses, a neuron's presynaptic terminal releases a chemical transmitter stored in synaptic vesicles which diffuses across a narrow synaptic cleft and activates receptors on the postsynaptic membrane of the target cell. The target may be a dendrite, cell body, or axon of another neuron, or a specialized region of a muscle or secretory cell. Neurons may also communicate via direct electrical coupling with ELECTRICAL SYNAPSES. Several other non-synaptic chemical or electric signal transmitting processes occur via extracellular mediated interactions.

More technical Information...

Saturday, November 07, 2009

Fast synaptic subcortical control of hippocampal circuits.

14 Oct 2009 Cortical information processing is under state-dependent control of subcortical neuromodulatory systems. Although this modulatory effect is thought to be mediated mainly by slow nonsynaptic metabotropic receptors, other mechanisms, such as direct ... Read more...


The optogenetic catechism.

14 Oct 2009 An emerging set of methods enables an experimental dialogue with biological systems composed of many interacting cell types--in particular, with neural circuits in the brain. These methods are sometimes called "optogenetic" because they use ... Read more...


Molecular and cellular approaches to memory allocation in neural circuits.

14 Oct 2009 Although memory allocation is a subject of active research in computer science, little is known about how the brain allocates information within neural circuits. There is an extensive literature on how specific types of memory engage different parts ... Read more...

 

Latest indexed articles for 'Synapses'

These are the very latest articles for this heading:

See a longer list of these articles.

Technical information about 'Synapses'

Definition: Specialized junctions at which a neuron communicates with a target cell. At classical synapses, a neuron's presynaptic terminal releases a chemical transmitter stored in synaptic vesicles which diffuses across a narrow synaptic cleft and activates receptors on the postsynaptic membrane of the target cell. The target may be a dendrite, cell body, or axon of another neuron, or a specialized region of a muscle or secretory cell. Neurons may also communicate via direct electrical coupling with ELECTRICAL SYNAPSES. Several other non-synaptic chemical or electric signal transmitting processes occur via extracellular mediated interactions.

Descriptor UI: D013569

Alternative terms: Synapses; Synapse;

Related Mesh Headings: Synaptic Transmission; Synaptosomes; Gap Junctions;

Allowable Qualifiers: classification; drug effects; enzymology; immunology; metabolism; microbiology; parasitology; pathology; physiology; radiation effects; radiography; radionuclide imaging; secretion; ultrastructure; ultrasonography; chemistry; virology; genetics;

Tree Number: A08.850; A11.284.149.165.420.780;

Technical Notes: note specifics; IMMUNOLOGICAL SYNAPSES is also available; / physiol: consider also SYNAPTIC TRANSMISSION; do not confuse with SYNAPSIS see CHROMOSOME PAIRING

© Advanogy LLC 2003-2009 - All rights reserved. Terms of Use | Contact Us | Index