Gap junctions in the nervous system

R. Rozental, C. Giaume, D. C. Spray

Research output: Contribution to journalReview articlepeer-review

135 Scopus citations

Abstract

Synapses are classically defined as close connections between two nerve cells or between a neuronal cell and a muscle or gland cell across which a chemical signal (i.e., a neurotransmitter) and/or an electrical signal (i.e., current-carrying ions) can pass. The definition of synapse was developed by Charles Sherrington and by Ramon y Cajal at the beginning of this century and refined by John Eccles and Bernard Katz 50 years later; in this collection of papers, the definition of synapses is discussed further in the chapter by Mike Bennett, who provided the first functional demonstration of electrical transmission via gap junction channels between vertebrate neurons. As is evidenced by the range of topics covered in this issue, research dealing with gap junctions in the nervous system has expanded enormously in the past decade, major findings being that specific cell types in the brain expresses specific types of connexins and that expression patterns coincide with tissue compartmentalization and function and that these compartments change during development. (C) 2000 Elsevier Science B.V.

Original languageEnglish (US)
Pages (from-to)11-15
Number of pages5
JournalBrain Research Reviews
Volume32
Issue number1
DOIs
StatePublished - Mar 24 2000

Keywords

  • Gap junction
  • Nervous system
  • Synapse

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • General Neuroscience
  • Clinical Neurology

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