Dr. Benzing is working in the lab. He has been able to demonstrate that ______ increases the frequency of the spontaneous firing rate.
A) EPSPs
B) IPSPs
C) EPSPs followed by IPSPs
D) simultaneous EPSPs and IPSPs

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

EPSPs (excitatory postsynaptic potentials) increase the likelihood that a neuron will fire an action potential. Therefore, an increase in the frequency of the spontaneous firing rate can be attributed to the presence of EPSPs in the neuron's membrane potential. IPSPs (inhibitory postsynaptic potentials), on the other hand, decrease the likelihood of the neuron firing, so they would not be expected to increase the firing rate. The other choices (C and D) suggest a combination of EPSPs and IPSPs, which could have variable effects on the firing rate depending on their relative strengths and timing. Therefore, A) EPSPs is the best choice for increasing the firing rate in this scenario.

Dr Benzing Is Working in the Lab