2.1.2 Neurotransmitters Flashcards
What are the 3 classes of neurotransmitters in the CNS?
Amino acids
Biogenic amines
Peptides
What are some examples of each neurotransmitter class?
Amino acid
-Glutamate
-GABA
-Glycine
Biogenic amines
-ACh
-NorAd
-Dopamine
-Serotonin (5-HT)
-Histamine
Peptides
-Somatostatin
-Cholecystokinin
-Dynorphin
What are amino acid neurotransmitters responsible for?
Excitation and inhibition
What amino acid neuotransmitters are excitatory?
Glutamate
Major excitatory neuotransmitter, over 70% of all CNS synapses are glutamatergic
What amino acid neuotransmitters are inhibitory?
GABA
Glycine
What are the two types of glutamate receptors?
Ionotropic
Metabotropic
What are the 3 different types of ionotropic receptors?
AMPA
Kainate
NMDA
What type of receptors are ionotropic receptors?
Ion channel- permeable to Na+ and K+, NMDA also permeable to calcium
What does activation of an ionotropic receptor cause?
Depolarisation, increased excitability
What receptor is metabotropic?
mGluR1-7
What type of receptor is a metabotropic receptor?
GPCR
What are metabotropic GPCRs linked to when activated?
Changes in IP3 and Ca2+ mobilisation
or
Inhibition of adenylate cyclase and decreased cAMP
What happens to ionotropic receptors with excitatory neurotransmitters?
Depolarisation of post-synaptic cell by acting on the ligand-gated ion channels
This leads to excitatory synaptic potenital and depolarisation resulting in more action potentials
What is an excitatory postsynaptic potential?
Depolarisation to threshold which makes the cell more likely to fire APs
What receptors do glutamatergic synapses have?
AMPA and NMDA
What do AMPA and NMDA receptors do in glutamatergic synapses ?
AMPA- mediates the initital fast depolarisation
NMDA- permeable to Ca2+, need glutamate to bind and the cell can be depolarised to allow ion flow through channel
(glycine acts as a coagonist)
What important role do glutamate receptors have?
Important in learning and memory
What effect does activation of NMDA and mGluRs have?
Up-regulate AMPA receptors
Strong, high frequency stimulation causes long term potentiation (LTP)
What is important for induction of long term potentiation in glutamate receptors?
Ca2+ entry through NMDA, strengthens the synapse
Too much Ca2+ causes excitotoxicity, too much gluatamate-excitiotoxicity
What is the main inhibitory transmitter in the brain?
GABA
What is the main inhibitory neurotransmitter in the brainsteam and spinal cord?
Glycine