RT Book, Section A1 Kandel, Eric R. A1 Koester, John D. A1 Mack, Sarah H. A1 Siegelbaum, Steven A. SR Print(0) ID 1180640980 T1 Transmitter Release T2 Principles of Neural Science, 6e YR 2021 FD 2021 PB McGraw Hill PP New York, NY SN 9781259642234 LK neurology.mhmedical.com/content.aspx?aid=1180640980 RD 2024/03/29 AB SOME OF THE BRAIN’S MOST remarkable abilities, such as learning and memory, are thought to emerge from the elementary properties of chemical synapses, where the presynaptic cell releases chemical transmitters that activate receptors in the membrane of the postsynaptic cell. At most central synapses, transmitter is released from the presynaptic cell at presynaptic boutons, varicosities along the axon (like beads on a string) filled with synaptic vesicles and other organelles that contact postsynaptic targets. At other synapses, including the neuromuscular junction, transmitter is released from presynaptic terminals at the end of the axon. For convenience, we will refer to both types of release sites as presynaptic terminals. In the last three chapters, we saw how postsynaptic receptors control ion channels that generate the postsynaptic potential. Here we consider how electrical and biochemical events in the presynaptic terminal lead to the rapid release of small-molecule neurotransmitters, such as acetylcholine (ACh), glutamate, and γ-aminobutyric acid (GABA), that underlie fast synaptic transmission. In the next chapter, we examine the chemistry of the neurotransmitters themselves as well as the biogenic amines (serotonin, norepinephrine, and dopamine) and neuropeptides, which underlie slower forms of intercellular signaling.