Sherrington found that repeated stimuli within a brief time have a cumulative effect. He referred to this phenomenon as ____.
A) temporal summation
B) spatial summation
C) synaptic summation
D) saltatory summation

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

Sherrington's phenomenon of repeated stimuli within a brief time having a cumulative effect is known as temporal summation. This occurs because the release of neurotransmitters from the presynaptic neuron during a single synaptic event does not always produce enough depolarization to reach the threshold for action potential firing in the postsynaptic neuron. However, repeated stimuli can trigger the release of more neurotransmitters and increase the likelihood of reaching threshold and firing an action potential.

Sherrington Found That Repeated Stimuli Within a Brief Time Have