Proceedings of a NATO ASI 20th Course of the International School of Biophysics held in Erice, Italy, October 20--November 1, 1991

The Perspective of Bioelectrochemistry.- I - Calcium Homeostasis.- Calcium Homeostasis in Skeletal Muscle.- Calcium Ion Fluxes Across Plasma Membranes.- Calcium Fluxes and Distribution in Neurons.- II - Presynaptic Nerve Function.- Biochemical Aspects of Presynaptic function.- Various Types of Acetylcholine Release from the Motor Nerve.- Biophysical Aspects of Presynaptic Activity.- III - Nervous Control of Muscle Function.- Low Molecular Weight Neurotransmitters.- Experimental Techniques to Measure Low Molecular Weight Neurotransmitters and Their Precursors and Metabolites.- The Electrochemical Signal Transmission by the Acetylcholine Receptor: Single Channel Conductance Events and Oligochannels.- Nervous Control of Cardiac Function: Modulation of Pacemaker Activity.- IV - Excitation-Contraction Coupling.- Excitation-Contraction Coupling in Skeletal Muscle.- Molecular Biology of Sarcoplasmic Reticulum Ca2+ Channels.- V - Muscle Contraction.- Contractile Protein Isoforms in Sarcomeric Muscle: Distribution, Fonction and Control of Gene Expression.- Bioenergetics of Muscle Contraction.- VI - Thermodynamics of Irreversible Processes.- Thermodynamics of Irreversible Processes Applied to Biological Systems: A General Survey.- Thermodynamics of Irreversible Processes Applied to Biological Systems: Selected Examples.

by G. MILAZZO and M. BLANK This book contains the lectures of the fourth advanced course Bioelectrochemislry W Neroe-Muscle Function: Bioelectrochemistry, Mechanisms, Energetics and Contro~ which took place at the Majorana Center in Erice, Italy, October 20th to November 1, 1991. The scope of the course was international in terms of both sponsorship and partici pation. Sponsors included the Bioelectrochemical Society, NATO, International Union of Pure and Applied Biophysics (lUPAB), the World Federation of Scientists and the Italian National Research Council. One-third of the sixty participants were from Italy, but the majority came from eighteen other nations. Since the course was part of the International School of Biophysics, the biophysi cal point of view was emphasized in integrating the biology with the electrochemistry. Lecturers were asked to use a quantitative approach with accepted standards and proper units, since this is absolutely essential for developing an effective common language for communication across disciplines. Participants were also urged not to forget that biological systems could also be considered as physical systems. Ion channels are proteins and their properties as polyelectrolytes contribute to the specific biological properties. The existence of families of channels, with very similar structures but different selectivities, suggests that the specificities arise from slight variations of a general basic design. These perspectives on nerve-muscle function helped to make the school course a unique treatment of the subject.