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inhibitory synapse

a specialized type of junction at which activity from one neuron (in the form of an action potential) reduces the probability of activity in an adjacent neuron by initiating an inhibitory postsynaptic potential. Compare excitatory synapse.

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Psychology term of the day

May 9th 2024

node of Ranvier

node of Ranvier

any of successive regularly spaced gaps in the myelin sheath surrounding an axon. The gaps permit the exchange of ions across the plasma membrane at those points, allowing the nerve impulse to leap from one node to the next in so-called saltatory conduction along the axon. [Louis A. Ranvier (1835–1922), French pathologist]