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Updated: Mar 9, 2026

Dopamine Release at Individual Presynaptic Terminals Visualized with FFNs
Published on: August 31, 2009
Dynamic Control of Neurotransmitter Release by Presynaptic Potential
Mickael Zbili1, Sylvain Rama1, Dominique Debanne1
1UNIS, UMR_S 1072, Institut National de la Santé et de la Recherche Médicale (INSERM), Aix-Marseille Université Marseille, France.
Abstract:
Action potentials (APs) in the mammalian brain are thought to represent the smallest unit of information transmitted by neurons to their postsynaptic targets. According to this view, neuronal signaling is all-or-none or digital. Increasing evidence suggests, however, that subthreshold changes in presynaptic membrane potential before triggering the spike also determines spike-evoked release of neurotransmitter. We discuss here how analog changes in presynaptic voltage may regulate spike-evoked release of neurotransmitter through the modulation of biophysical state of voltage-gated potassium, calcium and sodium channels in the presynaptic compartment. The contribution of this regulation has been greatly underestimated and we discuss the impact for information processing in neuronal circuits.
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