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How is information transmitted in a nerve?

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Abstract

In the last 15 years, a debate has emerged about the validity of the famous Hodgkin-Huxley model for nerve impulse. Mechanical models have been proposed. This note reviews the experimental properties of the nerve impulse and discusses the proposed alternatives. The experimental data, which rule out some of the alternative suggestions, show that while the Hodgkin-Huxley model may not be complete, it nevertheless includes essential features that should not be overlooked in the attempts made to improve, or supersede, it.

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  1. Laboratoire de Physique de l’Ecole Normale Supérieure de Lyon, 46 Allée d’Italie, 69364 Cédex 07, Lyon, France

    Michel Peyrard

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Peyrard, M. How is information transmitted in a nerve?. J Biol Phys 46, 327–341 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10867-020-09557-2

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