PSYC 3030 Lecture Notes - Lecture 16: Resting Potential, Depressant, Synaptic Weight

• School: University of Guelph
• Department: Psychology
• Course: PSYC 3030
• Professor: Boyer Winters

Document Summary

All cells in the body contain high concentrations of various amino acids because of their crucial role in protein synthesis and in metabolism. Some amino acids serve as precursors for neurotransmitters. Some amino acids are used directly as neurotransmitters. The most abundant free non-essential amino acids (can be readily synthesized by the body, not required in diet) in the mammalian brain. And in other body cells, different pools of amino acids (for nt or for protein synthesis) are kept separate from each other. Classical nts are very important (ach, 5ht, catecholamines), but they are used by only a small portion of the neurons in the brain. Amino acid nts are used by a much larger proportion of neurons. Glutamate (glu) is the most prevalent excitatory amino acid (aa) in the central nervous system (cns) Glutamate can be synthesized in nerve terminals of glutamatergic neurons via several different biochemical reactions: alpha-kg is synthesized from glucose, which is converted into glutamate.