Sanjay Mohindroo

Sanjay Mohindroo

Explore how bioelectricity fuels nerves, muscles, heart rhythm, healing, and next‑gen therapies. #bioelectricity #healthtech

Lighting the Hidden Power

Understanding bioelectricity in life


Our bodies hum with tiny electric signals that make life possible. #bioelectricity These signals arise when charged ions move across cell membranes, creating voltage differences that range from just one to a few hundred millivolts in most cells. In electric eels, specialized organs can generate currents up to an ampere at nearly 1,000 volts. In turn, this electric charge underlies every thought, movement, and heartbeat.

The Basics of Bioelectric Charge

How ions create life’s spark


At rest, cells maintain a steady voltage difference across their plasma membrane, typically around –70 mV inside relative to outside. This “resting membrane potential” comes from unequal ion distributions and selective permeability. Ions like sodium, potassium, calcium, and chloride flow through specialized channels to set up and adjust this potential #ions.

Additionally, the Nernst equation describes how ion concentration ratios determine equilibrium potentials for each ion type. These equilibrium values, combined via the Goldman equation, create the actual membrane voltage. Active pumps, like the sodium‑potassium ATPase, use energy to keep these gradients intact.

Neuronal Sparks in Action

The journey of a nerve impulse


When a neuron’s membrane potential briefly flips positive, an action potential fires. Voltage‑gated sodium channels open first, letting Na⁺ rush in. Then, potassium channels open to let K⁺ exit, restoring the negative resting state.

According to the all‑or‑none law, an action potential either fires fully or not at all. In turn, this ensures clear, reliable signals. Neurons pass these spikes along axons and across synapses, carrying thoughts, sensations, and reflexes at up to 120 m/s.

Electromyography (EMG) records these signals in muscles to assess nerve and muscle health. Clinicians use tiny electrodes to translate electrical activity into graphs and sounds.

Muscle Movements Powered Electrically

Excitation‑contraction coupling


In skeletal muscle fibers, a neuron’s action potential always precedes a rise in intracellular Ca²⁺, which then triggers contraction. At the neuromuscular junction, acetylcholine release starts the process, and depolarization travels down T‑tubules.

Calcium floods from the sarcoplasmic reticulum, binding troponin and moving tropomyosin to expose actin sites #contraction. Myosin heads then pull on actin filaments, shortening the fiber. When the signal stops, Ca²⁺ pumps resequester calcium, ending the contraction.

Cardiac Currents Keep Us Alive

Electrophysiology of the heart


Heart muscle cells, or cardiomyocytes, connect via intercalated discs for rapid electric spread. Specialized diads—junctions of T‑tubules and sarcoplasmic reticulum—enable swift calcium release and contraction.

Electrophysiology studies use catheters to map and treat arrhythmias, guiding ablation therapy for abnormal heart rhythms #cardiology. Pacemaker cells in the sinoatrial node self‑depolarize, setting the heartbeat tempo without any external signal.

Bioelectric Signals in Regeneration

Electric cues in wound healing


Wound sites generate endogenous electric fields that guide cell migration and tissue repair #healing. Epithelial cells and fibroblasts respond to these fields, speeding up closure and reducing scarring.

Recent research shows embryonic stem cells follow electrical cues during development, pointing to roles in regeneration and morphogenesis #regeneration. In the future, clinicians may use targeted electric fields to enhance healing.

Harnessing Electricity for Health

Bioelectronic therapies transforming medicine


Bioelectronic medicine uses electrical impulses to modulate nerve signals and treat diseases #bioelectronic. Early implants for Parkinson’s disease paved the way for devices that adjust organ function, control inflammation, or reduce pain.

“Electroceuticals” now aim for precise, closed‑loop control of disease pathways without drugs. Looking ahead, wearable and minimally invasive implants could bring personalized, side‑effect‑free treatments.

Embracing the Spark Within

Looking ahead to bioelectric frontiers


Electric currents in our cells connect mind, body, and health. As we uncover bioelectric roles in growth, healing, and disease, new therapies will emerge. #future #innovation Let’s celebrate the spark within and its power to drive life forward.