{"doi":"10.1002/9780470015902.a0000139.pub3","title":"Glutamate as a Neurotransmitter","abstract":"<jats:title>Abstract</jats:title>\n          <jats:sec>\n            <jats:label/>\n            <jats:p>Glutamate is a major excitatory neurotransmitter in the vertebrate central nervous system (CNS). Glutamate is released from vesicles that reside at axon terminals of neurons that use this amino acid as a neurotransmitter. Vesicular release is triggered by the arrival of a brief electrical signal (the action potential) at the presynaptic terminal. Most neurons in the vertebrate CNS, even if they themselves do not use glutamate as a neurotransmitter, are contacted by glutamate presynaptic terminals. Glutamate receptors mediate signalling initiated by glutamate release and are involved in plastic changes in the nervous system. These receptors fall into two classes: G protein coupled (metabotropic) and ligand‐gated ion channels (ionotropic). Ionotropic glutamate receptor activation on the target cell initiates a brief electrical depolarisation, which if large enough, causes an action potential in the target cell, and the cycle of signalling begins again. Excessive activation of glutamate receptors can cause neurotoxicity.</jats:p>\n          </jats:sec>\n          <jats:sec>\n            <jats:title>Key Concepts:</jats:title>\n            <jats:p>\n              <jats:list list-type=\"bullet\">\n                <jats:list-item>\n                  <jats:p>Glutamate is used as a neurotransmitter at the majority of synapses in the vertebrate CNS.</jats:p>\n                </jats:list-item>\n                <jats:list-item>\n                  <jats:p>Glutamate generally has an excitatory action on target neurons, increasing the probability of action potential firing in the target.</jats:p>\n                </jats:list-item>\n                <jats:list-item>\n                  <jats:p>Glutamate acts through G protein coupled receptors and through ligand‐gated ion channels.</jats:p>\n                </jats:list-item>\n                <jats:list-item>\n                  <jats:p>Glutamate synapses exhibit remarkable plasticity (malleability) that may play an important role in memory formation.</jats:p>\n                </jats:list-item>\n                <jats:list-item>\n                  <jats:p>In excess glutamate can be neurotoxic, acting through the same glutamate receptors that mediate normal signalling.</jats:p>\n                </jats:list-item>\n              </jats:list>\n            </jats:p>\n          </jats:sec>","journal":"Encyclopedia of Life Sciences","year":2012,"id":690285,"datarank":0.6907755278982138,"base_score":4.605170185988092,"endowment":4.605170185988092,"self_citation_contribution":0.6907755278982138,"citation_network_contribution":0.0,"self_endowment_contribution":0.6907755278982138,"citer_contribution":0.0,"corpus_percentile":null,"corpus_rank":null,"citation_count":99,"citer_count":0,"citers_with_citation_signal":0,"citers_with_endowment":0,"datacite_reuse_total":0,"is_dataset":false,"is_dataset_confidence":null,"is_data_producer":false,"deposit_databanks":null,"is_oa":false,"file_count":0,"downloads":0,"has_version_chain":false,"published_date":null,"fair_score":null,"fair_percentile":null,"algorithm_id":"datarank_citation_only_1hop_v6","ranking_scope":"data_only","authors":[{"id":1803430,"name":"Charles F Zorumski","orcid":null,"position":1,"is_corresponding":false},{"id":421667,"name":"Steven Mennerick","orcid":"0000-0003-0868-0664","position":0,"is_corresponding":false}],"reference_count":0,"raw_metadata":{"has_enrichment":true,"resolved":true,"title":"Glutamate as a Neurotransmitter","abstract":"<jats:title>Abstract</jats:title>\n          <jats:sec>\n            <jats:label/>\n            <jats:p>Glutamate is a major excitatory neurotransmitter in the vertebrate central nervous system (CNS). Glutamate is released from vesicles that reside at axon terminals of neurons that use this amino acid as a neurotransmitter. Vesicular release is triggered by the arrival of a brief electrical signal (the action potential) at the presynaptic terminal. Most neurons in the vertebrate CNS, even if they themselves do not use glutamate as a neurotransmitter, are contacted by glutamate presynaptic terminals. Glutamate receptors mediate signalling initiated by glutamate release and are involved in plastic changes in the nervous system. These receptors fall into two classes: G protein coupled (metabotropic) and ligand‐gated ion channels (ionotropic). Ionotropic glutamate receptor activation on the target cell initiates a brief electrical depolarisation, which if large enough, causes an action potential in the target cell, and the cycle of signalling begins again. Excessive activation of glutamate receptors can cause neurotoxicity.</jats:p>\n          </jats:sec>\n          <jats:sec>\n            <jats:title>Key Concepts:</jats:title>\n            <jats:p>\n              <jats:list list-type=\"bullet\">\n                <jats:list-item>\n                  <jats:p>Glutamate is used as a neurotransmitter at the majority of synapses in the vertebrate CNS.</jats:p>\n                </jats:list-item>\n                <jats:list-item>\n                  <jats:p>Glutamate generally has an excitatory action on target neurons, increasing the probability of action potential firing in the target.</jats:p>\n                </jats:list-item>\n                <jats:list-item>\n                  <jats:p>Glutamate acts through G protein coupled receptors and through ligand‐gated ion channels.</jats:p>\n                </jats:list-item>\n                <jats:list-item>\n                  <jats:p>Glutamate synapses exhibit remarkable plasticity (malleability) that may play an important role in memory formation.</jats:p>\n                </jats:list-item>\n                <jats:list-item>\n                  <jats:p>In excess glutamate can be neurotoxic, acting through the same glutamate receptors that mediate normal signalling.</jats:p>\n                </jats:list-item>\n              </jats:list>\n            </jats:p>\n          </jats:sec>","is_dataset_classified":null,"base_score":4.605170185988092,"endowment":4.605170185988092,"datacite_reuse_total":0,"file_count":0,"downloads":0,"views":0,"has_version_chain":false,"is_dataset":false,"is_oa":false,"pmid":"21097893","pmcid":null,"openalex_id":"https://openalex.org/W1688683092","authors":[],"funders":[],"total_grants":0,"fwci":null,"citation_percentile":null,"influential_citations":0,"citation_trend":[{"year":2015,"count":1},{"year":2023,"count":2},{"year":2025,"count":1},{"year":2026,"count":1}],"oa_status":"closed","license":"http://doi.wiley.com/10.1002/tdm_license_1.1","oa_locations":[{"url":"https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/pdf/10.1002/9780470015902.a0000139.pub3","host_type":"publisher"},{"url":"https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full-xml/10.1002/9780470015902.a0000139.pub3","host_type":"publisher"},{"url":"https://doi.org/10.1002/9780470015902.a0000139.pub3","host_type":"journal"}],"fields_of_study":["Neuroscience and Neuropharmacology Research","Photoreceptor and optogenetics research","Memory and Neural Mechanisms"],"mesh_terms":[],"keywords":["Metabotropic glutamate receptor","Glutamate receptor","Metabotropic glutamate receptor 7","Metabotropic glutamate receptor 5","Ionotropic effect","Metabotropic glutamate receptor 6","Metabotropic glutamate receptor 1","Metabotropic glutamate receptor 2","Neuroscience","Metabotropic glutamate receptor 8","Biology","Neurotransmitter","Kainate receptor","Neurotransmitter receptor","Long-term depression","Ion channel linked receptors","Silent synapse","Metabotropic receptor","Excitatory postsynaptic potential","Cell biology","Receptor","AMPA receptor","Biochemistry","Inhibitory postsynaptic potential","Central nervous system"],"sdg_mappings":[],"linked_datasets":[],"clinical_trials":[],"software_tools":[],"database_accessions":[],"source":"live","citation_network_status":"fetched"},"created_at":"2026-08-23T13:40:22.680383Z","pmid":null,"pmcid":null,"fwci":null,"citation_percentile":null,"influential_citations":0,"oa_status":null,"license":null,"views":0,"total_file_size_bytes":0,"version_count":0,"fair_f":null,"fair_a":null,"fair_i":null,"fair_r":null,"fair_zscore":null,"fair_rationale":null,"fair_model":null,"fair_agent_version":null,"fair_fulltext_source":null,"fair_has_llm":null,"fair_computed_at":null,"clinical_trials":[],"software_tools":[],"db_accessions":[],"linked_datasets":[],"topics":[]}