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. Author manuscript; available in PMC: 2022 Mar 9.
Published in final edited form as: Nat Neurosci. 2007 Nov;10(11):1377–1386. doi: 10.1038/nn2004

Figure 5.

Figure 5

Schematic illustrations of possible interactions between healthy and dying cells through gap junctions. (a) Toxic substances from dying cells in a focal ischemic core can diffuse through gap junctions to healthy cells in the penumbra, thereby spreading damage. Simultaneously, protective substances from healthy cells in the penumbra can diffuse into and protect damaged cells in the core. (b) The number of gap junctions determines the rate and extent of equilibration of substances between gap-junctionally coupled cells. (c,d) The ratio of toxic cells to healthy ‘bystanders’ determines whether toxic substances are safely diluted (c) or spread damage (d).