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An electrical synapse, or gap junction, is a mechanical and electrically conductive synapse, a functional junction between two neighboring neurons. The synapse is formed at a narrow gap between the pre- and postsynaptic neurons known as a gap junction .
The Outer ear consists of the pinna or auricle (visible parts including ear lobes and concha), and the auditory meatus (the passageway for sound). The fundamental function of this part of the ear is to gather sound energy and deliver it to the eardrum. Resonances of the external ear selectively boost sound pressure with frequency in the range 2 ...
This has shown that proteins in stereocilia move quickly, indicating that the movement of the proteins within the hair cells may be a very important factor to maintaining the integrity of the hair bundles in the inner ear. Further research found myosin and actin, two proteins that are important for cell movement, move very quickly.
Chemical and electrical synapses are two ways of synaptic transmission. In a chemical synapse, electrical activity in the presynaptic neuron is converted (via the activation of voltage-gated calcium channels) into the release of a chemical called a neurotransmitter that binds to receptors located in the plasma membrane of the postsynaptic cell ...
This synapse has been described as the largest in the brain. [10] The related endbulb of Held is also a large axon terminal synapse (15–30 μm in diameter) found in another auditory brainstem structure, namely the anteroventral cochlear nucleus (AVCN). [11] As with the calyces, these synapses promote fast, efficient information transfer.
The main goal of electrical synapses is to synchronize electrical activity among populations of neurons. [3] The first electrical synapse was discovered in a crayfish nervous system. [3] Chemical synaptic transmission is the transfer of neurotransmitters or neuropeptides from a presynaptic axon to a postsynaptic dendrite. [3]
Afferent neurons innervate cochlear inner hair cells, at synapses where the neurotransmitter glutamate communicates signals from the hair cells to the dendrites of the primary auditory neurons. There are far fewer inner hair cells in the cochlea than afferent nerve fibers – many auditory nerve fibers innervate each hair cell.
Axons of the vestibular nerve synapse in the vestibular nucleus are found on the lateral floor and wall of the fourth ventricle in the pons and medulla. It arises from bipolar cells in the vestibular ganglion which is situated in the upper part of the outer end of the internal auditory meatus .