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Related Concept Videos

Resting Membrane Potential01:24

Resting Membrane Potential

21.0K
The relative difference in electrical charge, or voltage, between the inside and the outside of a cell membrane, is called the membrane potential. It is generated by differences in permeability of the membrane to various ions and the concentrations of these ions across the membrane.
The Inside of a Neuron is More Negative
The membrane potential of a cell can be measured by inserting a microelectrode into a cell and comparing the charge to a reference electrode in the extracellular fluid. The...
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The Resting Membrane Potential01:21

The Resting Membrane Potential

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Overview
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Resting Potential Decay01:15

Resting Potential Decay

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The resting membrane potential of a neuron (-70mV) is sustained due to the selective ion permeability of the membrane. At the resting potential, the membrane is slightly permeable to ions like sodium (Na+) and chloride (Cl−) and highly permeable to potassium ions (K+). Differences in the ions' concentration inside the cell compared to the outside are maintained by membrane transport proteins like channels and pumps.
At rest, the K+ is the main ion that moves across the membrane...
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Potentiometry: Membrane Electrodes01:15

Potentiometry: Membrane Electrodes

1.4K
Membrane electrodes, also known as p-ion electrodes, use membranes that selectively interact with free analyte ions, generating a potential difference across the membrane. The resulting membrane potential, known as the asymmetry potential, is not zero even when analyte concentrations on both sides of the membrane are equal. The membrane's response is typically not selective to a single analyte but proportional to the concentration of all ions in the sample solution capable of interacting at...
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Action Potential01:14

Action Potential

10.4K
Neurons communicate by firing action potentials—the electrochemical signal that is propagated along the axon. The signal results in the release of neurotransmitters at axon terminals, thereby transmitting information to the nervous system. An action potential is a specific "all-or-none" change in membrane potential that results in a rapid spike in voltage.
Membrane potential in neurons
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Action Potential01:31

Action Potential

4.1K
Neurons communicate by firing action potentials—the electrochemical signal that is propagated along the axon. The signal results in the release of neurotransmitters at axon terminals, thereby transmitting information to the nervous system. An action potential is a specific "all-or-none" change in membrane potential that results in a rapid spike in voltage.
Membrane potential in neurons
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Updated: Dec 23, 2025

Assembly and Characterization of Biomolecular Memristors Consisting of Ion Channel-doped Lipid Membranes
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Encoding Membrane-Potential-Based Memory within a Microbial Community.

Chih-Yu Yang1, Maja Bialecka-Fornal1, Colleen Weatherwax1

  • 1Division of Biological Sciences, University of California, San Diego, Pacific Hall Room 2225B, Mail Code 0347, 9500 Gilman Drive, La Jolla, CA 92093, USA.

Cell Systems
|April 29, 2020
PubMed
Summary
This summary is machine-generated.

Bacteria can form memory patterns using light-induced changes in cellular membrane potential. This light-induced bacterial memory, mediated by potassium channels, offers insights into prokaryotic computations.

Keywords:
Hodgkin-Huxleyanti-phasebiofilmion channelsmembrane potentialmemorymicrobial communitiesopticalpersistentrobust

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Area of Science:

  • Microbiology
  • Neuroscience
  • Biophysics

Background:

  • Cellular membrane potential is crucial for memory in complex organisms.
  • The capacity for memory encoding in simpler organisms like bacteria is largely unexplored.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate if bacteria can encode memory patterns via changes in membrane potential.
  • To explore the mechanisms and persistence of such memory in bacterial biofilms.

Main Methods:

  • Inducing changes in bacterial membrane potential using transient optical perturbations.
  • Utilizing potassium channels to mediate the observed changes.
  • Analyzing the response of bacteria to extracellular ion concentration oscillations at single-cell resolution.

Main Results:

  • Light-induced optical perturbations imprint persistent, robust memory patterns in bacterial membrane potential.
  • Light-exposed bacteria exhibit an anti-phase response to ion oscillations compared to unexposed cells.
  • These memory patterns persist for hours, allowing visualization of spatial memory within biofilms.

Conclusions:

  • Bacteria can encode persistent, single-cell-level memory patterns through light-induced membrane potential changes.
  • This mechanism, mediated by potassium channels, suggests potential for computations in prokaryotic communities.
  • The findings draw a parallel between neuronal memory mechanisms and bacterial behavior.