Asked in NeuroscienceNerves
Neuroscience
Nerves
What is a depolarized neuron?
Answer

Wiki User
December 02, 2010 6:58PM
A depolarized neuron will successfully pass a message. If you have a polarized neuron will not be able to feel a burn, ect.
Related Questions
Asked in Neuroscience, Nerves
What happens when a neuron is polarized?

When a neuron is polarized, usually by the influx of chloride
ions into the neuron, it is incapable of creating an action
potential (incapable of firing). Only when the neuron returns to a
resting potential, via pumping ions back across the membrane, can
it be depolarized (sodium ion influx) to generate an action
potential.
Asked in Neurophysiology
If a neuron at rest had its inside be more positive at rest than the outside how would this affect neuron signaling and the action potential to signal and is this even possible?

A neuron wouldn't be at rest if it had positive membrane
potential. It would fire an action potential. If the neuron
remained depolarized then it will fire controllably, and nearby
cells are then at risk of being overstimulated. If this activity
spreads far enough then it will lead to an epileptic seizure -
which is also damaging to neurons.
Asked in Science
What causes a neuron to return to a resting potential from action potential?

A stimulus first causes sodium channels to open, sodium ions
rush into the neuron, so the neuron becomes more positive and
becomes depolarized. When potassium channels do open, potassium
rushes out of the cell, reversing the depolarization, also at about
this time, sodium channels start to close. This causes the action
potential to go back toward -70 mV (a repolarization).
Asked in Neuroscience
What makes sure that there is one action potential in the neuromuscular junction for one action potential in the muscle?

After a neuron fires, there is a refractory period where certain
factors in the neuron prevent it from being depolarized again. This
is made possible by an "overshoot" of polarization (returning to a
much stronger negative ion charge inside the neuron) after the
action potential passes. This ensures that voltage-controlled ion
channels remain closed for a small period of time and do not become
overactive through continuous restimulation.
Asked in Nervous System
What is something unhealthy for nervous system and why?

Tetrodotoxin is a neurotoxin. It acts to neuronal depolarization
and prevent subsequent action potentials via binding to the voltage
gated sodium channels on the cell membrane.
In a healthy neuron, these voltage gated sodium channels are
critical for generation of an action potential in response to
graded depolarization (I.e. EPSP). As the neuron is depolarized,
these channels open and allow for the influx of sodium ions into
the cell, which in turn further depolarized the neuron in a
positive feedback loop.
Tetrodotoxin (TTX) is the toxin found in blowfish (fugu).
Another harmful substance for the nervous system is manganese
which causes manganism, resembling some aspects of Parkinson's
disease.
Off the top of my head: 6-HO-dopamine, MPTP, ibotenic acid.
Wikipedia these neurotoxins for their respective mechanisms of
action
Source: degrees in neuroscience and neuropharmacology
Asked in Neuroscience, Neurophysiology, Neuropharmacology, Nerves
Why is a neuron called an interneuron?

A neuron is called a inter-neuron because that specific neuron
takes impulse from one neuron to a next neuron. For example your
sensory neuron sends a impulse that you had felt a hot object. It
goes through the spine to a inter-neuron to a motor neuron (this
processes is called a reflex). Then the motor neuron tells your
muscles in your hand to move
Asked in Neurophysiology, Nerves
What is happening to the electrical potential of a neuron when it generates an action potential?

Generally speaking the neuron is becoming depolarized, but to be
more specific
Phases of Action Potential:
1. Resting Potential: Vm = -65mV
2. Rising Phase: Vm = 40mV; Rapid depolarization of the
membrane.
3. Overshoot: When the inside of the neuron is positively
charged with respect to the outside of the membrane.
4. Falling Phase: Rapid depolarization until the membrane in
more negative than the resting potential (-65mV)
a. The last part of the falling phase is called the undershoot,
or after-hyperpolarization.
Asked in Neuroscience, Nerves
Define relay neuron?
Asked in Neuroscience
How would the resting membrane potential be altered if there were a lower than normal concentration of sodium ions in the extracellular fluid?

During depolarization, sodium (Na) rushes into the neuron
through Na channels (at the Nodes of Ranvier between the bundles of
myelin "insulation"). Less Na in the extracellular fluid would mean
there would be less to rush in. So, the neuron would not be
depolarized as well. The resting membrane potential would be more
positive on the inside.