Questions tagged [neurotransmitter]
Small molecules involved in the propagation of a nerve signal across the synapses.
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What makes dopaminergic neurons fire when maintaining base dopamine levels?
Are they signaled by other action potentials? Other neurotransmitters? Do they just fire on their own? If not triggered by an external stimulus, why does depolarization make them fire more frequently?
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Vision and signal through the nervous system: Is it Frequency Shift Keying?
I have questions regarding the signal between the retina and other parts of the brain. There are two types bipolar cells which are excited by light or darkness to the retina.
Question: Do these form ...
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Which co-transmitters are released first?
I understand that a single neuron can release different neurotransmitters depending on the frequency of its stimulation (see https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK10818/). As the frequency of ...
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Can acetylcholine leak away from the synapse and cause spasms?
I am currently studying Pharmacology and a question came to mind. We know that Acetylcholine is used as a neurotransmitter in the neuromuscular junction, both Sympathetic as Parasympathetic, but as I ...
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Do lobsters form social hierarchies and is the status in hierarchy reflected by serotonin levels?
In his book 12 rules for life Jordan Peterson claims that:
Consider serotonin, the chemical that governs posture and escape in the lobster. Low-
ranking lobsters produce comparatively low levels of ...
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Neurons: how does the brain reduce electromagnetic interference?
I read that the frequency of signal over neural ion channels in the brain can range from .19 Hz - 30 Hz at low voltage. For an interference example, AC electricity is 60 Hz at high voltage and ...
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Where does the initial action potential come from?
When talking about action potentials we say that previous neurons caused an action potential in this neuron and that this neuron's action potential caused the same in further neurons.
But what is the ...
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Modern research or study on patterns in nerve signals
I am trying to find any recent study on pattern recognition in nerve signals. It does not really matter the part of the body where the research is focused on. It can be anything from studying activity ...
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Why do Hot/Cold drinks taste sweeter once returning to room temperature?
Now, I know this is a very bizarre question, and I tried to find a correct exchange for this, but it might relate to biology/science as it being our taste buds and everything.
I am so sorry if there ...
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Impact of increased sodium conductance at a neuromuscular junction
If trans-epithelial Na+ transport were to increase at the synapse(please consider both pre and post-synaptic membrane situations) in a neuromuscular junction, how would that manifest itself? My guess ...
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How do different sensory stimuli differ in nerve signal?
Every day, we experience different types of sensory stimulus, like heat, pain, cold, etc. However, in each case, the transmission of the stimulus to the brain through the neurones is carried on in the ...
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Is Signal Transduction Unidirectional from the Stimuli to the Final Receptor?
I wonder if signal transduction in biological systems including visual, olfactory, tactile or any other biological system, is unidirectional. Suppose that $X_i$ is the $ith$ cell in the signal ...
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Dopamine and other neurotransmitter release during music listening
I'm looking for any studies that show a positive curve in respects to music sessions in humans and neurotransmitter release (specifically dopamine, epinephrine, and serotonin.) Any direct links would ...
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What determines the influx of calcium ions in the voltage-gated ion channels?
Calcium channels play a crucial role in neuronal signaling by helping the synaptic vesicles to fuse through the synaptic active zone and release their neurotransmitters. My question is, at a given ...
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Is there a difference between human neuron cells compared to those of other animals?
Thanks for looking.
Firstly, I am nowhere near biologist, just a student, so my apologies if this isn't a "good" question.
Background:
So I was searching about intelligence, brains and ...
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Are all Autoreceptors Downregulated by their Respective Endogenous Ligands?
I know that the 5-HT1A and $\alpha$2 adrenoreceptors receptors serve as autoreceptors for serotonin (5-HT) and norepinephrine respectively and are down-regulated by repeat exposure to their respective ...
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What are the distinct neurochemical components of sexual pleasure?
Sexual activity is usually described as pleasurable.
What neurochemical systems does sex activate? Does the presence or absence of a partner make a difference -- say, in the activation of the ...
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Humans have Cannabinoid receptors. Does that mean we're meant to consume cannabis?
I know the answer is no. But what then explains the name of these receptors being specific to Cannabinoid found in cannabis? Aren't Cannabinoid receptors exclusive to Cannabinoid? Why are they named ...
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Inhibitory effect of GABA through GABA(A) receptors
Over at Wikipedia, the following is written in the article about GABA(A) receptors:
"Upon activation, the GABA(A) receptor selectively conducts Cl− through its pore. Cl- will flow out of the ...
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Where are neurotransmitters secreted?
As far as I know, neurotransmitters are proteins, so they should be secreted from the cell body of the neurons.
However, when I checked online, they say neurotransmitters are secreted in the axon ...
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Using serotonin for relief from allergies
When someone suffers from an allergy, due some allergens they are given drugs like anti-histamine, adrenaline or serotonin. How does serotonin affects the body to give a relieve from the action of ...
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Alternative hypothesis for learning in brain beyond the hebbian rule
I was reading on wikipedia that there are exceptions to the hebbian rule, and I was curious about the possibilities of other hypotheses of how learning occur in the brain. So I would like to know:
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How do anticholinesterase pesticides kill nematodes?
Compounds that inhibit the enzyme acetylcholinesterase are commonly used as pesticides. In animals with centralized respiratory systems controlled by the nervous system, poisoning with an ...
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Can catecholamines degrade back into tyrosine, or, is synthesis irreversible? (in human body)
Catecholamines like dopamine, noradrenaline and adrenaline are broken down with enzymes that catalyze the reaction. Can they degrade back into tyrosine (a conditionally essential amino acid), or is ...
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How long does it take for dopamine to reach normal levels after a significant drop?
The building block sequence for is: Phenylalanine << Tyrosine << L-Dopa << Dopamine. It’s produced in only a few, very specific regions: Substantia Nigra and the Ventral Tegmental ...
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Are endorphins addictive?
Endorphins are among the brain chemicals known as neurotransmitters, which function to transmit electrical signals within the nervous system. Stress and pain are the two most common factors leading to ...
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Reward pathway sequence of events [closed]
So I've been reading a lot of papers on the reward pathway. But since I'm not schooled in any relevant knowledge I'm having trouble grasping the chain of events. Most papers detail just bits and ...
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What is synaptic clearance?
Please explain what the term synaptic clearance means. For example, what would dopamine synaptic clearance be? It is important to me in context of dopamine signaling variation due to difference in ...
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Differences between neurotransmitters and neuromodulators
According to the Wikipedia article on neuromodulation
a neuromodulator can be conceptualized as a neurotransmitter that is
not reabsorbed by the pre-synaptic neuron or broken down into a
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How does the dopamine spike from drugs compare quantitatively to pleasurable non-drug activities?
I did find this popular press article that quotes a researcher offering the following quantification: "in lab experiments done on animals, sex causes dopamine levels to jump from 100 to 200 units, and ...
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Do findings on promoter methylation of the serotonin transporter gene and amygdala activity contradict the established view of serotonergic function?
In this article http://www.nature.com/neuro/journal/v17/n9/full/nn.3778.html it states that
Increased promoter methylation of the serotonin transporter gene predicted increased threat related ...
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What makes synaptic vesicle release probabilistic?
The fusion of synaptic vesicles (SVs) with the plasma membrane of the active zone (AZ) upon arrival of an action potential (AP) at the presynaptic compartment is a tightly regulated probabilistic ...
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Where do the Ca ions that causes neurotransmitter release from synaptic bouton, come from?
I hope the information you share will help clarify the following doubts and gaps in my knowledge:
Where do the Calcium ions in the influx (which then triggers the neurotransmitter vesicles) come from?...
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What are the chemicals in the gap at a synapse? [duplicate]
I am learning about (introductory level) biological psychology and the synapse structure came into mind. I do understand that neurotransmitters are transmitted between two neurons via the synapse ...
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Are neural connections one-way?
I'm trying to think about how two neurons communicate, typically shown in pictures as an electric pulse traveling along a long, thin connective tissue.
Is this depiction somewhat accurate, and if so, ...
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Are neurotransmitters part of the endocrine system?
I was speaking with a substitute teacher of mine, and we were discussing whether neurotransmitters are part of the endocrine system or not. My class just spent an entire semester on the topic of the ...
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What causes sodium channels to open?
What triggers the opening of sodium channels in a neuronal membrane? Is it acetylcholine that activates sodium channels in the postsynaptic membrane?
Are sodium channels like receptors that have to ...
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Could we have endless pleasure?
Are there any studies that point out that we could have a device in the future or drug that could give us endless amount of pleasure by stimulating or blocking processes in the brain or nerve system? ...
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What happens in your brain when you receive information which causes you to bristle?
I'm talking about moments when you watch a film and you bristle, or when you listen to music, etc.
What kind of neurotransmitter flow changes?
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What material fills the synaptic cleft? Is it water?
The synaptic cleft is the gap between the pre-synaptic and post-synaptic neurons, and neurotransmitters are transferred between the neurons within this region. What substance exits in this space, is ...
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How long does it take the neurotransmitters to diffuse accross the synaptic cleft?
Neurotransmitters get from the pre-synaptic neuron to the receptors on the post-synaptic neuron by diffusion across the gap between these two (the synaptic cleft). My question is, how much time does ...
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Is there such thing as "half-life" of dopamine?
If a dopamine is released at T=0 and binds to receptor D2, what determines the time when the concentration of this neurotransmitter bound to the receptor reaches half of the original concentration? In ...
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How do organophosphates actually work?
The common explanation as to what the primary mechanism of action for organophosphates (and carbamates) is is the inhibition of the enzyme acetylcholinesterase and resulting buildup of acetylcholine ...
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What's the difference between Cytoplasmic pool and Granular storage pool?
What's the difference between Cytoplasmic pool and Granular storage pool when speaking about neurotransmitters and synaptic cleft. I encountered this here:
Amphetamine’s mechanism of action
thus ...
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What substances can selectively destroy certain cells?
Recently, I've watched a documentary about how, in the 1980s, people were buying and using drugs from the streets and then becoming paralyzed a few days afterwards. The drugs that they were using were ...
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Is NMDA produced in the body?
On the wiki page for NMDA it says that NMDA is a synthetic substance that mimics glutamate. So why does the body not use glutamate instead of NMDA?
Also how is it possible that our body can produce ...
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Exocytosis of synaptic vesicles
I'm reading the following paper:
http://jcs.biologists.org/content/123/6/819
The part I am really confused about is when they say:
Exocytosis appears to use two alternative pathways: clathrin-...
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Could an action potential produce few or more neurotransmitters based on the stimulus received?
I reckon that if you would be able to widen the AP width, it would produce more neurotransmitters in that larger time interval. Is that correct? Or does the neuron have a standard amount of ...
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How do Neurotransmitters get into the neurons?
This may be a dumb question. I'm not a Neuroscientist. I'm just trying to learn more about the brain to improve my AI learning algorithms…
I understand that there are different kinds of ...
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What would happen if brain neurons did not reduce their sensitivity to neurotransmitters after prolonged exposure?
From my understanding, neurons decrease their sensitivity to neurotransmitters by reducing the amount of receptors on the cell membrane in response to sustained neurotransmitter activity. One ...
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