axosomatically

Axosomatically is an adverb that describes something happening or being related to both the axon and the soma of a neuron. The axon is a long, slender projection of a nerve cell, or neuron, that typically conducts electrical impulses known as action potentials away from the nerve cell body. The soma, also known as the cell body, is the part of a neuron that contains the nucleus and other organelles. Therefore, events or structures that are axosomatic involve or occur at the junction between the axon of one neuron and the soma of another neuron.

This term is most commonly used in neurobiology and neuroscience to describe synapses. A synapse is a structure that allows a neuron to pass an electrical or chemical signal to another neuron or to the target effector cell. When a synapse is described as axosomatic, it means that the axon terminal of one neuron is forming a connection with the cell body of another neuron. This type of synaptic arrangement can influence the excitability of the postsynaptic neuron by directly affecting its soma.