Glutamate in the brain has unexpected qualities, researchers show with a new analysis method
Researchers at Chalmers University of Technology and Gothenburg University in Sweden have achieved something long thought almost impossible – counting the molecules of the neurotransmitter glutamate released when a signal is transferred between two brain cells. With a new analysis method, they showed that the brain regulates its signals using glutamate in more ways than previously realised. The ability to measure the activity and quantity of glutamate in brain cells has been long sought-after among researchers. Glutamate is the major excitatory neurotransmitter in the brain. Despite its