Bioelectrochemistry of Cells and Tissues

1. Electric organs and their innervation: A model system for the study of cholinergic function.- * Introduction.- * Anatomy and embryology of the electromotor system.- * Electrophysiology of the electromotor system.- * Electrolocation and electrocommunication.- * The cellular and molecular biology of cholinergic synapses as deduced from work on the electromotor system.- * Summary.- 2. Contractility and motility of muscle and non-muscle cells.- * Introduction.- * Histology of striated muscle cells.- * Muscle physiology.- * The sliding filament model.- * Actin and myosin are proteins organized in filaments.- * Actin and myosin exist in a number of variants.- * The atomic structures of actin and myosin subfragment 1 have been solved.- * The cross-bridge cycle.- * The mechanism of ATP-hydrolysis by myosin and acto-myosin.- * Where in the myosin molecule is the force produced?.- * The regulation of muscle activity.- * Electrochemical coupling in muscle cells.- * Muscle diseases (Myopathies).- * Motor systems in non-muscle cells.- * Summary.- 3. Light-transduction in photoreceptors.- * Introduction.- * Structure and function of photoreceptors.- * Molecular basis of phototransduction.- * Light-induced currents.- * Function of calcium ions in photoreception.- * Voltage-gated currents and their physiological significance.- * Ion transport.- * Summary and conclusions.- 4. An electrochemical description of metabolism.- * Introduction.- * Cellular structure and enzyme organisation.- * Cellular energy transduction.- * Proton and electron flow in intracellular structures.- * Importance of electrical processes in the control of metabolism.- * Significance of cellular potentials.- * Theoretical considerations.- * Relevant experimental studies.- * Electrochemical regulation of metabolism.- 5. The low-frequency dielectric properties of biological cells.- * Introduction.- * Theory of the dielectric experiment.- * Mechanisms of dielectric dispersion in biological systems.- * Mechanisms of dielectric relaxation in cell suspensions and tissues.- * Nonlinear interactions of cells with electrical fields.- * A four state enzyme capable of harvesting electrical energy for the performance of useful (bio)chemical work.- 6. Dielectrophoretic and electrorotation behaviour of cells: Theory and experiment.- * Introduction.- * Theoretical background.- * Cell dielectrophoresis.- * Cell electrorotation.- * Relationship between dielectrophoresis and electrorotation.- 7. Effects of magnetic fields on living systems.- * Introduction.- * Field types and modes of action.- * Experimental in vitro results.- * Experimental in vivo results.- 8. Low-frequency electromagnetic field effects on cell metabolism.- * Introduction.- * Experimental techniques.- * Biochemical and biological response of biological systems.- * Current models for mechanisms of electrostimulation.