Action potential

An action potential is a rapid sequence of changes in the voltage across a membrane. The membrane voltage, or potential, is determined at any time by the relative ratio of ions, extracellular to intracellular, and the permeability of each ion.

1. What is an action potential and how does it work?
2. What is an action potential in a neuron?
3. Why is it called action potential?

What is an action potential and how does it work?

An action potential occurs when a neuron sends information down an axon, away from the cell body. Neuroscientists use other words, such as a "spike" or an "impulse" for the action potential. The action potential is an explosion of electrical activity that is created by a depolarizing current.

What is an action potential in a neuron?

Action potentials (those electrical impulses that send signals around your body) are nothing more than a temporary shift (from negative to positive) in the neuron's membrane potential caused by ions suddenly flowing in and out of the neuron.

Why is it called action potential?

It is called the action potential because the positive charge then flows through the cytoplasm, activating sodium channels along the entire length of the nerve fibre.