Regulation of ion flow control.

Voltage-gated ion channels are a class of transmembrane proteins that form ion channels that are activated by changes in a cell's electrical membrane potential near the channel.

Ligand-gated ion channels (LICs, LGIC), also commonly referred to as ionotropic receptors, are a group of transmembrane ion-channel proteins which open to allow ions such as Na+, K+, Ca2+, and/or Cl− to pass through the membrane in response to the binding of a chemical messenger (i.e. a ligand), such as a neurotransmitter.