Encyclopedia - Genetics Category

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action potential

action potential extract from Britannica Online.

Brief (about one-thousandth of a second) reversal of electric polarization of the membrane of a nerve or muscle cell. Stimulation of the cell by certain chemicals or by sensory receptor cells causes depolarization of the membrane, permitting an impulse to move along the nerve fibre (in nerve cells) or causing the cell to contract (in muscle cells).

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