What is the brief electrical charge that travels down the axon called?

What is the brief electrical charge that travels down the axon called?

• A. Action potential
• B. Resting potential
• C. Aphasia
• D. Hormones

Answer: (A)

The main concept is that neurons communicate with brief electrical pulses called action potentials. An action potential is a rapid, all-or-nothing spike in membrane voltage that travels along the axon, allowing the signal to reach other neurons or muscles. It starts when the neuron reaches threshold, sodium channels open and the inside of the cell becomes briefly more positive, followed by potassium channels that restore the negative resting state. This wave of depolarization propagates along the axon, often more quickly in myelinated fibers via saltatory conduction. The resting potential is simply the neuron’s baseline negative charge when it’s not firing. Aphasia is a language impairment, and hormones are chemical messengers in the bloodstream, not the electrical signal traveling down the axon.

The main concept is that neurons communicate with brief electrical pulses called action potentials. An action potential is a rapid, all-or-nothing spike in membrane voltage that travels along the axon, allowing the signal to reach other neurons or muscles. It starts when the neuron reaches threshold, sodium channels open and the inside of the cell becomes briefly more positive, followed by potassium channels that restore the negative resting state. This wave of depolarization propagates along the axon, often more quickly in myelinated fibers via saltatory conduction. The resting potential is simply the neuron’s baseline negative charge when it’s not firing. Aphasia is a language impairment, and hormones are chemical messengers in the bloodstream, not the electrical signal traveling down the axon.