I. Tasaki et Pm. Byrne, DISCONTINUOUS VOLUME TRANSITIONS INDUCED BY CALCIUM SODIUM-ION EXCHANGE IN ANIONIC GELS AND THEIR NEUROBIOLOGICAL IMPLICATIONS, Biopolymers, 34(2), 1994, pp. 209-215
Discontinuous volume transitions in poly(acrylic acid) gels were studi
ed by determining equilibrium swelling curves of small gel beads immer
sed in salt solutions containing varying concentrations of Ca2+ and Na
+. Reversible contractions of gel membranes associated with Ca2+-Na+ e
xchange were examined using both isometric and isotonic recording devi
ces. A discontinuous change in electric conductance was demonstrated i
n association with Ca2+-Na+ exchange in gel membranes. These experimen
tal findings provide a sound physicochemical basis for elucidating the
mechanism of nerve excitation. (C) 1994 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.