Summary
The amplitude and quantal content of synaptic potentials at the neuromuscular synapse of the frog are extremely sensitive to the calcium concentration in the extracellular solution (Jenkinson, 1957; Dodge & Rahamimoff, 1967). When the calcium concentration in the bathing solution is clamped at a constant level by employing a suitable calcium buffer, the average endplate potential amplitude and quantal content are reduced relative to those measured in a Ringer with a similar yet unbuffered free calcium concentration (Ginsburg & Rahamimoff, 1983). This may indicate that the calcium concentration in the extracellular space is inhomogenous, and that normally, its level in the synaptic cleft is probably higher than in the bulk solution. Possible origins for the calcium inhomogeneity may be extracellular matrix components and calcium transporters situated in the synaptic membranes facing the cleft; changes in their distributions and densities may provide the nerve terminal with energetically economical mechanisms for self-regulating synaptic transmission.
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© 1986 Martinus Nijhoff Publishing, Boston
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Ginsburg, S., Rahamimoff, R. (1986). Serendiptic Modulation of Transmitter Release: Extracellular Calcium Inhomogeneity. In: Rahamimoff, R., Katz, B. (eds) Calcium, Neuronal Function and Transmitter Release. Topics in the Neurosciences, vol 1. Springer, Boston, MA. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4613-2307-5_12
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4613-2307-5_12
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