Synapse. Illustration of a synapse, the junction between two nerve cells . Other nerve cell bodies are present (branched, with mauve nuclei). Synapses

---

Synapse. Illustration of a synapse, the junction between two nerve cells . Other nerve cell bodies are present (branched, with mauve nuclei). Synapses transmit electrical signals from one nerve cell to the next. When an electrical signal reaches a synapse it triggers the release of chemicals called neurotransmitters (red) from vesicles (pink) in the terminal swelling of the presynaptic cell. The vesicles burst through the membrane, and neurotransmitters cross a microscopic gap called the synaptic cleft, and bind to the receptor nerve cell. The neurotransmitter changes the permeability of the postsynaptic membrane, causing it to propagate an electrical impulse.

---

Size: 2950px × 4950px
Photo credit: © JOHN BAVOSI/SCIENCE PHOTO LIBRARY / Alamy / Afripics
License: Licensed
Model Released: No

Keywords: anatomy, artwork, body, cell, cells, communication, exocytosis, fibre, human, illustration, impulse, journey, journeying, journeys, nerve, nervous, neurone, neurotransmitter, site, synapse, synaptic, system, travel, travelling, travels, vesicle