This course, arranged by EPFL, aims for a mechanistic description of mammalian brain function at the level of individual nerve cells and their synaptic interactions.
This course, arranged by EPFL and also available as a MOOC on edX, aims for a mechanistic description of mammalian brain function at the level of individual nerve cells and their synaptic interactions.
Introduction to the course Cellular Mechanisms of Brain Function.
Ion channels and the movement of ions across the cell membrane.
Ion channels and the movement of ions across the cell membrane.
Spatiotemporal dynamics of the membrane potential.
Action potentials, and biophysics of voltage-gated ion channels.
Voltage-gating kinetics of sodium and potassium channels.
The ionic basis of the action potential, including the Hodgkin Huxley model.
Action potential initiation and propagation.
Action potential initiation and propagation.
Synaptic transmission and neurotransmitters
Neurotransmitter release in the presynaptic specialization.
Presynaptic short-term dynamics and plasticity.
Synaptic modulation through diffusing neurotransmitters.
Investigating the structure of synapses with electron microscopy.
Glutamate release after an action potential. Resulting post-synaptic potentials in a biophysically realistic situation.
Glutamatergic excitatory neuronal circuits.
The mechanisms behind changes in synaptic function created by learning.
A closer look at GABA_A receptor mediated fast inhibition.
How benzodiazepines act on GABA_A receptors.
Long-range inhibitory connections in the brain, with examples from three different systems.
GABAergic interneurons and local inhibition on the circuit level.
