Live Quiz Arena
🎁 1 Free Round Daily
⚡ Enter ArenaQuestion
← Human Body & HealthIf a person experiences hypocalcemia, and the voltage-gated sodium channels of the neuromuscular junction become more sensitive, which consequence follows?
A)Decreased action potential duration
B)Reduced muscle contraction strength
C)Spontaneous muscle contractions (tetany)✓
D)Increased neuromuscular transmission efficiency
💡 Explanation
Hypocalcemia increases the excitability of nerve and muscle cells because it reduces the threshold for action potential firing. Therefore, spontaneous muscle contractions (tetany) occur, rather than reduced strength, because the neuromuscular junction is more easily depolarized.
🏆 Up to £1,000 monthly prize pool
Ready for the live challenge? Join the next global round now.
*Terms apply. Skill-based competition.
Related Questions
Browse Human Body & Health →- Why does a drug that inhibits acetylcholinesterase at the neuromuscular junction cause sustained muscle contraction, rather than a normal cycle of contraction and relaxation?
- Why does prolonged exposure to synthetic progestins increase osteoporosis risk in postmenopausal women?
- During rapid eccentric contraction of the quadriceps, which consequence follows regarding the behavior of individual sarcomeres?
- If a novel subunit vaccine administered with an adjuvant elicits a weak initial antibody response in mice, which immune mechanism's enhancement by the adjuvant is most likely deficient?
- If a patient experiences sudden hypotension and bronchoconstriction following exposure to peanuts, which process explains why mast cell degranulation causes this systemic response?
- Why does the partial pressure of oxygen (PO₂) in the alveoli not fully equilibrate with the PO₂ in the pulmonary capillaries during gas exchange?
