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Excitatory and Inhibitory Effects of Neurotransmitters

Excitatory and Inhibitory Effects of Neurotransmitters

When an action potential reaches the presynaptic axon terminal, it releases neurotransmitters from the neuron into the synaptic cleft at a chemical synapse. The released neurotransmitter can be excitatory or inhibitory. The critical criteria commonly used to determine whether a molecule is a neurotransmitter at a chemical synapse are the molecule's presence in the presynaptic neuron. Second, its release is in response to strong presynaptic depolarization. And lastly, the presence of specific...

Synaptic Signaling

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Neurons communicate at synapses, or junctions, to excite or inhibit the activity of other neurons or target cells, such as muscles. Synapses may be chemical or electrical.
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Chemical Synapses

Chemical synapses are specialized sites between two neurons or between a neuron and a non-neuronal cell like a muscle, glandular or sensory cell.
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Updated: May 9, 2026

Evaluation of Synaptic Multiplicity Using Whole-cell Patch-clamp Electrophysiology

Evaluation of Synaptic Multiplicity Using Whole-cell Patch-clamp Electrophysiology

Published on: April 23, 2019

Rectifying electrical synapses can affect the influence of synaptic modulation on output pattern robustness.

Gabrielle J Gutierrez¹, Eve Marder

¹Volen Center for Complex Systems and Biology Department, Brandeis University, Waltham, Massachusetts 02454, USA.

The Journal of Neuroscience : the Official Journal of the Society for Neuroscience

|August 9, 2013

Summary

This summary is machine-generated.

Rectifying electrical synapses significantly alter neuronal network dynamics, impacting rhythmic output. Their placement influences network robustness against synaptic strength changes, suggesting functional roles in neural circuits.

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Area of Science:

Neuroscience
Computational Neuroscience
Computational Biology

Background:

Rectifying electrical synapses are common but their impact on neuronal network dynamics is poorly understood.
Neuronal networks generate complex rhythmic outputs through interactions between neurons and synapses.

Purpose of the Study:

To investigate how rectifying electrical synapses affect the behavior of a computational model of a neuronal network.
To explore the influence of rectifying synapse configuration on network output and robustness.

Main Methods:

Utilized computational models to simulate a five-cell neuronal network with rectifying electrical synapses.
Compared four configurations of rectifying synapse placement and polarity.
Analyzed network dynamics and sensitivity to chemical synapse strength alterations.

Main Results:

Rectification significantly altered the network's functional output and its sensitivity to chemical synapse strengths.
Certain rectifying synapse configurations enhanced network robustness against changes in synaptic strength compared to non-rectifying synapses.
The model exhibited complex rhythmic output patterns influenced by synapse interactions.

Conclusions:

Rectifying electrical synapses play a crucial role in shaping neuronal network dynamics.
Modulation of rectifying electrical synapses could have significant functional consequences for neural circuits.
The placement and polarity of rectifying synapses are key factors in determining network behavior and robustness.