[2] A receptor potential is often produced by sensory transduction.
[3] It is generally a depolarizing event resulting from inward current flow.
Within the same neuron, a receptor potential can cause local current to flow to a region capable of generating an action potential by opening voltage-gated ion channels.
When stimulated, the taste bud triggers the release of neurotransmitters through exocytosis of synaptic vesicles from the presynaptic membrane.
The neurotransmitter molecules diffuse across the synaptic cleft to the postsynaptic membrane of the primary sensory neuron, where they elicit an action potential.