Explain the function and process of a neuron's refractory period.

Question

What will be an ideal response?

Answer 1

Although the electrical potential across the membrane is returning from its peak toward the resting point, it is still above the threshold. Why doesn't the cell produce another action potential during this period? (If it did, of course, it would endlessly repeat one action potential after another.) Immediately after an action potential, the cell is in a refractory period during which it resists the production of further action potentials. In the first part of this period, the absolute refractory period, the membrane cannot produce an action potential, regardless of the stimulation. During the second part, the relative refractory period, a stronger-than-usual stimulus is necessary to initiate an action potential. The refractory period depends on two facts: The sodium channels are closed, and potassium is flowing out of the cell at a faster-than-usual rate. In most of the neurons that researchers have tested, the absolute refractory period is about 1 millisecond (ms), and the relative refractory period is another 2-4 ms.