Resting membrane potential
Resting membrane potential, written Vmem, is the voltage difference across a cell membrane when the cell is not firing. George and Bates describe it as arising from differences in ion concentration between the inside of the cell and the space outside it, with a value that varies by cell type7. Recent work treats Vmem as a signal tied to cell state, and not only as a background for nerve impulses56.
- Earliest held
- 1902, Bose, J. C.
- Most discussed in
- Exploring Instructive Physiological Signaling…, 2016
- In the library
- 566 passages in 68 works
- Rewritten
- 2026-10-03
Early measurements
Bose reported in 1902 that a sharp tap to a plant stalk produced a sudden fall, or negative variation, in the current. The resting potential difference dropped by 026 volt, as printed in the text, and a stronger tap gave a larger fall1. Bayliss, in his 1915 textbook, placed such effects at the contact surface between phases. He wrote that a potential difference appears there when one ion is soluble in both phases and the other in only one2. He also held that the electrical change in nerve and muscle belongs to excitation, and may persist when muscle contraction is absent. He explained the demarcation current and the negative variation by membrane potential2.
Membrane theory and its tests
Lillie, writing in 1923, said that membrane potentials result from the membrane's influence on how ions are distributed and transferred between two solutions. He judged these properties to be of fundamental importance to bioelectric processes3. Crile, in 1926, quoted Loeb on the origin of cellular charges. Loeb had suggested that Beutner measure the potential difference between apples or rubber-plant leaves and water, in place of muscle or nerve. Beutner found the difference greatest when the bounding liquid was pure water, and smaller when salt was added4. Loeb noted that MacDonald had seen a similar effect in nerve4.
Vmem and cell state
Sundelacruz, Levin and Kaplan (2008) followed human mesenchymal stem cells as they became bone or fat cells. Differentiated cells were more hyperpolarized than undifferentiated ones. When the authors depolarized the stem cells with drugs, differentiation did not proceed5. Özkucur and colleagues (2015) found that chronic depolarization of neurons altered their arrangement. They argued that the resting potential itself is the effector, not the chloride flow that causes it. Blocking gap junctions rescued downstream effects of the drug, which they took as support6. George and Bates (2022) restate that differentiated cells are generally hyperpolarized relative to stem cells7.
Depolarization in cancer
Sheth and Esfandiari (2022) reviewed the link between resting potential and cancer. They state that ion channels and pumps set a resting potential that bears on differentiation state and proliferation. They also state that proliferative tissues are generally more depolarized than non-proliferative ones8. As an example they give normal human mammary epithelial cells at -60 mV, against -13 mV in breast cancer cells isolated from patients8. They describe Vmem as a non-genetic biophysical feature of the microenvironment that regulates the balance between patterned growth and carcinogenesis8.
A sharp tap was now given to the stalk, and a sudden diminution, or negative variation, of current occurred, the resting potential difference being decreased by 026 volt.
Bose, J. C., 1902 · Response in the Living and Non-Living · open at passage 52The contact surface between phases is, similarly, the site of a potential difference, if one of the ions is soluble in both phases, the other in one only.
Bayliss, W. M., 1915 · Principles of General Physiology · open at passage 2818These properties are apparently of fundamental importance to the bioelectric processes, and their conditions will be considered more fully later.
Lillie, R. S., 1923 · Protoplasmic Action and Nervous Action · open at passage 186In these experiments Dr. Beutner made the important observation that the P. D. between the surface of an apple or a leaf was a maximum, when the bounding liquid was pure water
Crile, G. W., 1926 · A Bipolar Theory of Living Processes · open at passage 475Reversal of the progressive polarization via pharmacological modulation of transmembrane potential revealed that depolarization of hMSCs prevents differentiation.
Sundelacruz S, Levin M, Kaplan DL, 2008 · Membrane potential controls adipogenic and osteogenic differentiation of… · open at passage 1However, the true effector is the changes in resting membrane potential (Vmem), not the chloride ion flows per se.
Özkucur N, Quinn KP, Pang JC, Du C, Georgakoudi I, Miller…, 2015 · Membrane potential depolarization causes alterations in neuron arrangement and… · open at passage 36The difference in ion concentrations within the cell and in the extracellular space creates a transmembrane potential (Vmem). All cells have a resting membrane potential, but the exact value of Vmem varies by cell type.
George LF, Bates EA, 2022 · Mechanisms Underlying Influence of Bioelectricity in Development · open at passage 6the resting membrane potential in normal human mammary epithelial cells (HMEC) is -60 mV. This value goes up to -13 mV in breast cancer cells isolated from patients (93).
Sheth M, Esfandiari L, 2022 · Bioelectric Dysregulation in Cancer Initiation, Promotion, and Progression · open at passage 15