Lecture

Biopotential Generation: Synaptic Transmission

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In course

EE-511: Sensors in medical instrumentation

Fundamental principles and methods used for physiological signal conditioning. Electrode, optical, resistive, capacitive, inductive, and piezoelectric sensor techniques used to detect and convert physiological information to electrical signals. Medical dev ...

Description

This lecture covers the generation of biopotentials and the process of synaptic transmission, focusing on the structure and function of synapses, the difference between electrical and chemical synapses, neurotransmitter release, and the effects of dopamine on Parkinson's disease.

Instructors (2)

Kamiar Aminian

Kamiar Aminian received the M.S. degree in electrical engineering in 1982, the Ph.D degree in biomedical engineering in 1989 and the Postgraduate degree on technical computing in 1993 from Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL). He was assistant professor (1994-1996) with Sharif University of Technology (Tehran). He joint EPFL in 1996 where he is currently Professor of medical instrumentation and the director of the Laboratory of Movement Analysis and Measurement in the Institute of Bioengineering of EPFL. His research interests include methodologies for human movement monitoring and analysis in real world conditions mainly based on wearable technologies and inertial sensors with emphasis on gait, physical activity and sport. His research aims to perform outcome evaluation in orthopaedics, to improve motor function and intervention programs in aging and patients with movement disorders and pain, and to identify metrics of performance in sport science. Kamiar Aminian is a member of the International Society of Posture and Gait Research, the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers, the European Society of Movement Analysis in Adults and Children, the Prevention of fall Network Europe, the Intentional Society of Biomechanics and the President of the 3D analysis of the human movement group. He is author or co-author of more than 450 scientific papers published in reviewed journals and presented at international conferences and holds 10 patents related to medical devices. Full CV ORCID

Anisoara Ionescu

Teaching & PhD PhD Students Sebastian Mayr, Dario Sciacca, Hojjat Karami Past EPFL PhD Students as codirector Abolfazl Soltani, Gaëlle Prigent Courses Electronic circuits and systems EE-336 The objective of this course is an in-depth study of electronic circuits and systems using the fundamental concept of feedback, with an emphasis on practical applications. The course also covers the fundamental principles of A/D and D/A converters and their architectures. Sensors in medical instrument

Official source

Ontological neighbourhood

Biology

Cell biology: Neurotransmission

Related concepts (25)

Synapse

In the nervous system, a synapse is a structure that permits a neuron (or nerve cell) to pass an electrical or chemical signal to another neuron or to the target effector cell. Synapses are essential to the transmission of nervous impulses from one neuron to another. Neurons are specialized to pass signals to individual target cells, and synapses are the means by which they do so. At a synapse, the plasma membrane of the signal-passing neuron (the presynaptic neuron) comes into close apposition with the membrane of the target (postsynaptic) cell.

Chemical synapse

Chemical synapses are biological junctions through which neurons' signals can be sent to each other and to non-neuronal cells such as those in muscles or glands. Chemical synapses allow neurons to form circuits within the central nervous system. They are crucial to the biological computations that underlie perception and thought. They allow the nervous system to connect to and control other systems of the body. At a chemical synapse, one neuron releases neurotransmitter molecules into a small space (the synaptic cleft) that is adjacent to another neuron.

Electrical synapse

An electrical synapse is a mechanical and electrically conductive link between two neighboring neurons that is formed at a narrow gap between the pre- and postsynaptic neurons known as a gap junction. At gap junctions, such cells approach within about 3.8 nm of each other, a much shorter distance than the 20- to 40-nanometer distance that separates cells at chemical synapse. In many animals, electrical synapse-based systems co-exist with chemical synapses.

Synaptic vesicle

In a neuron, synaptic vesicles (or neurotransmitter vesicles) store various neurotransmitters that are released at the synapse. The release is regulated by a voltage-dependent calcium channel. Vesicles are essential for propagating nerve impulses between neurons and are constantly recreated by the cell. The area in the axon that holds groups of vesicles is an axon terminal or "terminal bouton". Up to 130 vesicles can be released per bouton over a ten-minute period of stimulation at 0.2 Hz.

Excitatory synapse

An excitatory synapse is a synapse in which an action potential in a presynaptic neuron increases the probability of an action potential occurring in a postsynaptic cell. Neurons form networks through which nerve impulses travels, each neuron often making numerous connections with other cells of neurons. These electrical signals may be excitatory or inhibitory, and, if the total of excitatory influences exceeds that of the inhibitory influences, the neuron will generate a new action potential at its axon hillock, thus transmitting the information to yet another cell.

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Understanding Synaptic Transmission

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Synaptic Transmission: Electrical vs Chemical

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Explores the modeling of synaptic potentials and the factors influencing their amplitude.

Synaptic transmission: Structure and Mechanisms MOOC: Simulation Neurocience

Explores the structure and function of synapses, including neurotransmitter diversity and the role of AMPA and NMDA receptors.

Synaptic transmission: Cellular Mechanisms MOOC: Cellular Mechanisms of Brain Function