Brock J A, Cunnane T C
Nature. 1987;326(6113):605-7. doi: 10.1038/326605a0.
At the skeletal neuromuscular junction, electrophysiological methods have provided much useful information about the mechanisms involved in the release of transmitter. At the autonomic neuroeffector junction it has not been possible to carry out similar studies. Here we report a method of extracellular recording which allows simultaneous measurement of both the nerve action potential and transmitter release from postganglionic sympathetic nerve terminals. We have confirmed that release is intermittent, but the importance of this new approach is that the relationship between the nerve terminal action potential and transmitter release can be studied unambiguously for the first time. Thus we are able to show unequivocally that intermittence is caused by a low probability of release in the invaded varicosity and not by failure of the action potential to invade the varicosity.
在骨骼肌神经肌肉接头处，电生理方法已提供了许多有关递质释放机制的有用信息。而在自主神经效应器接头处，进行类似的研究尚无可能。在此，我们报告一种细胞外记录方法，该方法能够同时测量神经动作电位和节后交感神经末梢的递质释放。我们已证实释放是间歇性的，但这种新方法的重要之处在于，首次能够明确地研究神经末梢动作电位与递质释放之间的关系。因此，我们能够明确地表明，间歇性是由受侵袭曲张体中释放概率较低所致，而非动作电位未能侵袭曲张体所致。
