Table of Contents

• Prequiz...
• Part I Two Opposing Gradients
• 1: Getting through membranes
• 2: Going with the flow
• 3: Permeability is key!
• 4: Meet the neighborhood
• 5: Getting groovy with gradients
• 6: Some real numbers...
• Part II Two Useful Equations
• 7: The Goldman Equation
• 8: Playing with the Goldman Equation
• 9: The Nernst Equation
• 10: Taking Nernst for a test drive
• 11: The world according to Nernst
• 12: How bout them logs?
• 13: Pumps and channels redux
• Part III The Action Potential
• 14: At equilibrium? Or far from it?
• 15: Opening the gate
• 16: The action potential and the Goldman equation
• 17: Action potential and the Nernst equation

 

Going with the flow

For most of this module, we'll focus more on channels than on pumps. It's not that pumps aren't important -- in fact, as we'll discuss more later, they "set the stage" for everything that's going to happen. But once the stage is set, channels become the interesting part of the system.

An open channel allows conditions inside and outside of the cell to affect each other. And there are 2 major differences between the inside and the outside:

1. The concentrations of ions are different inside vs. outside the cell. We'll be creative and call this "C" for concentration: in fact, we have a CONCENTRATION GRADIENT which can power diffusion. Furthermore, each ion has ITS OWN concentration gradient. In other words, K+ ions inside the cell only "care" about how many K+ there are on the outside -- they don't give a fig about Na+ or Cl- or any other anions (A-).
2. As + ions move through the cell membrane, they can't take - ions with them, and this results in a slight charge imbalance, inside vs. outside the cell. We'll call this a VOLTAGE GRADIENT, or just V. Charged particles "want" to move down a voltage gradient, just like dissolved particles "want" to move down a concentration gradient.

And since ions are both charged particles and dissolved particles, they have two different gradients to worry about.

Why do I say "two different gradients"? Because the concentration gradient and the voltage gradient don't necessarily have the same effect on the particle -- in fact, these two gradients are often OPPOSED to each other.

If a ball is on 2 opposed gradients, it will come to rest in the middle, right?

Well, if ions are being affected by 2 opposing gradients, they will also come to an equilibrium distribution. Once that equilibrium is found, the ions can still move back and forth, but the NET movement will be 0 -- the definition of an equilibrium.

(Throughout this module, I'll use electric blue to show the voltage gradient, and plum red for the diffusion gradient.)