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Units and abbreviations: Current (I): amps (A), Voltage (V): volts (V), Resistance (R):
Ohms (Ω), Conductance (g): Siemans (S), Capacitance (C): Farads (F), moles/liter =
Molar (M). Membrane potential (Vm), Membrane resistance (Rm), axial resistant (Ra),
Na+ current (INa), K+ current (IK), mega (M) 106, kilo (K) 103 milli (m) 10-3, micro (μ) 10-
6
, nano (n) 10-9, pico (p) 10-12.
FOR CALCULATIONS, PLEASE ROUND TO THE NEAREST WHOLE NUMBER.
1. Complete the table below, calculating the Nernst potentials for each ion. Remember
to consider the valence of each ion in your calculation!
Ion Extracellular Intracellular Eion at 37 oC
Concentration Concentration
K+ 4 mM 150 mM
+
Na 145 mM 10 mM
-
Cl 108 mM 9 mM
Ca2+ 2 mM 0.00001 mM Very Positive
(the extremely low [Ca]i makes this value very large)
2. Excessive ingestion of K can alter the extracellular K concentration, which can have a
dramatic effect on neuronal function. Calculate the Nernst potential for K (in mV) if the
extracellular concentration were to increase to 20 mM (this would be difficult to achieve
with diet).
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3. If the resting membrane potential were established solely by the relative permeability
of the membrane to Na and K, with a 30-fold greater K permeability, what would Vm be
before and after the change described above?
4. Early in development, the intracellular Cl- concentration is much higher than the
mature situation presented in the table above. During those early days, increasing Cl-
permeability can be excitatory. Why is that?
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5. In a mature neuron with the Cl- concentrations in the table and Vm = -66 mV, what
would happen to membrane potential if a GABA synapse were activated, which causes
opening of a large number of Cl- channels? How would this effect the impact of an
excitatory synaptic input to the cell via AMPA-type glutamate receptors, if both synaptic
events occurred at the same time? Explain your answers.
6. The threshold for action potential generation in a hypothetical neuron is -45 mV and
the membrane potential is -65mV. A synaptic input activates nicotinic acetylcholine
receptors and depolarizes the membrane to -40 mV. On the axes below, draw this
response and the electrical events that you would predict during the following 30
milliseconds. LABEL THE AXES! Explain what happens during each phase of the
diagram.
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7. A constant 30 pA current injection is applied to the cell and the membrane resistance
of the neuron is 100 MΩ. If the resting potential (Vm) of the cell is –70 mV before this
current injection, what will the new Vm be at steady state (we have blocked all voltage-
gated conductances for this experiment and are only measuring passive changes in Vm)?
The time constant of a neuron is 2 msec. What will Vm be 2 msec after the onset of this
current injection. What two electrical parameters affect that delay between the initiation
of the change and the new steady-state voltage?
8. A neuron with ionic gradients described in the table above receives a synaptic input
that opens channels that conduct Na. If the resting membrane potential is –70 mV and
the change in conductance is 30 nS, what is the magnitude of the Na current (INa)?
YOUR NAME:_________________________________________circle one 183 193___
9. A hypothetical neuron receives a synaptic input onto a dendrite. The neuron has a
resting membrane potential of -75 mV. The synaptic input depolarizes the membrane by
+5 mV at the synapse and it is located 90 microns from the soma. The length constant
for the dendrite is 90 microns. What magnitude voltage response would you expect to
see in the soma, and why? What electrical properties of the cell determine this change in
the electrical signal?
10. With the ionic conditions described in the table above, what would be the reversal
potential of a synaptic response mediated by channels that conducted both Na+ and K+,
but the permeability to K+ was 1.5 times greater than the permeability to Na+? Why do
we care about the reversal potential of a synaptic response?