Understanding the Electrical Behavior of the Action Potential in Terms of Elementary Electrical Sources

Autor/in	Rodriguez-Falces, Javier
Titel	Understanding the Electrical Behavior of the Action Potential in Terms of Elementary Electrical Sources
Quelle	In: Advances in Physiology Education, 39 (2015) 1, S.15-26 (12 Seiten)Infoseite zur Zeitschrift PDF als Volltext Verfügbarkeit
Sprache	englisch
Dokumenttyp	gedruckt; online; Zeitschriftenaufsatz
ISSN	1043-4046
DOI	10.1152/advan.00130.2014
Schlagwörter	Scientific Concepts; Scientific Methodology; Scientific Principles; Biofeedback; Neurosciences; Profiles; Models; Mathematical Applications; Mathematical Models; Science Achievement; Student Attitudes; Exercise Physiology; Behavioral Objectives; Teaching Methods; Science Education; Higher Education; Foreign Countries; Spain + Suchen Sie Ihr Suchwort? Neuroscience; Neurowissenschaften; Neurowissenschaft; Charakterisierung; Profilanalyse; Analogiemodell; Angewandte Mathematik; Innermathematische Anwendung; Mathematical model; Mathematisches Modell; Schülerverhalten; Sportphysiologie; Teaching method; Lehrmethode; Unterrichtsmethode; Naturwissenschaftliche Bildung; Hochschulbildung; Hochschulsystem; Hochschulwesen; Ausland; Spanien
Abstract	A concept of major importance in human electrophysiology studies is the process by which activation of an excitable cell results in a rapid rise and fall of the electrical membrane potential, the so-called action potential. Hodgkin and Huxley proposed a model to explain the ionic mechanisms underlying the formation of action potentials. However, this model is unsuitably complex for teaching purposes. In addition, the Hodgkin and Huxley approach describes the shape of the action potential only in terms of ionic currents, i.e., it is unable to explain the electrical significance of the action potential or describe the electrical field arising from this source using basic concepts of electromagnetic theory. The goal of the present report was to propose a new model to describe the electrical behaviour of the action potential in terms of elementary electrical sources (in particular, dipoles). The efficacy of this model was tested through a closed-book written exam. The proposed model increased the ability of students to appreciate the distributed character of the action potential and also to recognize that this source spreads out along the fiber as function of space. In addition, the new approach allowed students to realize that the amplitude and sign of the extracellular electrical potential arising from the action potential are determined by the spatial derivative of this intracellular source. The proposed model, which incorporates intuitive graphical representations, has improved students' understanding of the electrical potentials generated by bioelectrical sources and has heightened their interest in bioelectricity. (As Provided).
Anmerkungen	American Physiological Society. 9650 Rockville Pike, Bethesda, MD 20814-3991. Tel: 301-634-7164; Fax: 301-634-7241; e-mail: webmaster@the-aps.org; Web site: http://advan.physiology.org/
Erfasst von	ERIC (Education Resources Information Center), Washington, DC
Update	2020/1/01