Glutamate Receptors in Health and Disease II

Dear Colleagues,

Glutamate constitutes the most abundant neurotransmitter in the vertebrate nervous system and influences the majority of processes in health and disease. In the human brain, almost 90% of the synaptic connections involve glutamate. Glutamate plays a pivotal role in synaptic plasticity and learning and memory processes and regulates growth cones and synaptogenesis during brain development. Excessive glutamate release and subsequent excitotoxicity occurs in ischemic cascade, stroke, and seizures. Disturbed glutamatergic neurotransmission may contribute to autism, some forms of intellectual disability, depression, schizophrenia, and diseases such as amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, lathyrism, and Alzheimer's disease.

Glutamate activity is regulated by a variety of receptors, including AMPA, NMDA, KA, and metabotropic glutamate receptors (mGlu). The AMPA, NMDA, and KA receptors are ionotropic receptors specialized for fast excitation, while metabotropic receptors act through second messenger systems to create slow, sustained effects. Glutamate excess is rapidly removed from the extracellular space by glutamatergic transporters (EAAT and VGLUT) that are located both in neurons and astrocytes.

All glutamatergic receptors were shown in neuroscience drug discovery studies to be excellent drug targets. Due to their pharmacological properties and localization, the mGlu receptors are especially important and promising.

This Special Issue, “Glutamate Receptors in Health and Disease”, aims to provide a summary of the field, to explore recent advances in the role of glutamate receptors in brain development and functioning, and to discuss how can we use pharmacological tools to regulate glutamatergic neurotransmissions in mental and neurodegenerative disorders. We invite authors to submit original research and review articles related to any of these aspects.

Assist. Prof. Joanna Wierońska
Dr. Paulina Cieslik
Guest Editors

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