Page 54 - The Miracle of Electricity in the Body
P. 54
Image of cell membrane
and ion channels
Outside of cell
P +
Na +
K +
ATP ADP Inside of cell
Cells’ electrical properties allow information to be transmitted and signals carried.
Channels on the cell membrane open their gates for sodium ions, changing the
electrical potential in as little as one thousandth of a second. This feature is of vi-
tal importance to the bio-electrical processes taking place in the cell membrane,
and therefore, to an organism’s vital functions.
