What is the resting membrane potential and why is it important? Describe 2 ways the cell...

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Medical Sciences

What is the resting membrane potential and why is it important?Describe 2 ways the cell maintains the resting membranepotential.

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Resting membrane potential is the result of adifference in the concentration of ions inside and outside thecellAll cells establish a resting membrane potentialLet us discuss the cell membrane of a neuron as an exampleWhen a neuron is not sending a signal it is at rest When aneuron is at rest the inside of the neuron is negative relative tothe outsideAlthough the concentrations of the different ions attempt tobalance out on both sides of the membrane they cannot because thecell membrane is selectively permeable and allows only some ions topass through channels ion channelsThe cell membrane separates two electrolyte fluidsICFIntracellular fluid andECFExtracellular fluid with different ionicconcentrationsThe difference in the number of positively charged potassiumions K inside and outside the cell See Answer

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