An electrical impulse cannot directly cross the gap so a different mechanism has to be used. Between impulses the transmitter molecules are rapidly removed from the synaptic cleft to prevent ...

Mar. 17, 2025 — It has long been thought that only nerve and heart cells use electric impulses to communicate, while epithelial cells -- which compose the linings of our skin, organs and body ...

Gene therapy in the central nervous system (CNS) is hindered by the presence of the blood–brain barrier, which restricts access of serum constituents and peripheral cells to the brain parenchyma.

However, a series of weak stimuli can combine, increasing the amount of neurotransmitter that is released. This results in enough neurotransmitter being diffused across the synaptic cleft to ...

Penn Vet researchers show that the immune system can recognize and control the latent stage of the parasite Toxoplasma gondii ...

When a person thinks, speaks, eats, walks, or just sits comfortably with all bodily systems functioning normally, the billions of cells that make up the brain and the rest of the nervous system ...

Each part of the nervous system uses internal checks and balances to regulate its activity, responding to various factors like mood, health status, and the external environment.¹ These regulatory ...

The peripheral nervous system (PNS) is the system of nerves and ganglia outside the brain and spinal cord. The PNS consists ...

The infamous box jellyfish developed its frighteningly powerful venom to instantly stun or kill prey, like fish and shrimp, so their struggle to escape wouldn’t damage its delicate tentacles.

Our laboratory aims at exploiting recent advances in stem cell biology to develop radically new therapies for degenerative disease and cancer. The main focus in the lab is on the biology and ...

Most humans have long-lived infections in various tissues-including in the nervous system-that typically do not result in ...