David Roderick Curtis 1927–2017

2020 ◽  
Vol 31 (2) ◽  
pp. 152
Author(s):  
Stephen J. Redman ◽  
Robert Porter
Keyword(s):  
Central Nervous System ◽  
Royal Society ◽  
Scientific Work ◽  
Inhibitory Synapses ◽  
Gamma Amino Butyric Acid ◽  
Amino Butyric Acid ◽  
The Central Nervous System ◽  
Academy Of Sciences ◽  
Australian Academy ◽  
Excitatory Transmitter

David Curtis was a pioneer in the identification of excitatory and inhibitory transmitters released at synapses in the central nervous system. He made major contributions to the identification of gamma-amino butyric acid (GABA) and glycine as inhibitory transmitters released at inhibitory synapses. His work laid the foundation for the subsequent acceptance that L-glutamate was the major excitatory transmitter. David’s scientific work led to him receiving many accolades and honours, including Fellowships of the Australian Academy of Sciences, the Royal Society and a Companion of the Order of Australia.

scholarly journals David Roderick Curtis. 3 June 1927—11 December 2017

2020 ◽  
Vol 69 ◽  
pp. 133-143
Author(s):  
S. J. Redman ◽  
R. Porter
Keyword(s):  
Scientific Work ◽  
Inhibitory Synapses ◽  
Historical Records ◽  
Gamma Amino Butyric Acid ◽  
Amino Butyric Acid ◽  
The Central Nervous System ◽  
Australian Science ◽  
Academy Of Sciences ◽  
Australian Academy ◽  
Excitatory Transmitter

David Curtis was a pioneer in the identification of excitatory and inhibitory transmitters released at synapses in the central nervous system. He made major contributions to the identification of gamma-amino butyric acid (GABA) and glycine as inhibitory transmitters released at inhibitory synapses. His work laid the foundation for the subsequent acceptance that l -glutamate was the major excitatory transmitter. David's scientific work led to him receiving many accolades and honours, including fellowships of the Australian Academy of Sciences and the Royal Society and a Companion of the Order of Australia. Note: This memoir was commissioned by the Historical Records of Australian Science and is published here with minor amendments. It was published in June 2020 and is available at https://doi.org/10.1071/HR19016 .

Neuroanatomy and neurophysiology

2021 ◽  
pp. 725-852
Keyword(s):  
Central Nervous System ◽  
Nervous System ◽  
Cervical Vertebrae ◽  
Lymphatic Vessels ◽  
Cell Types ◽  
Cellular Level ◽  
Inhibitory Synapses ◽  
The Central Nervous System ◽  
Emotion Memory ◽  
Different Cell Types

‘Neuroanatomy and neurophysiology’ covers the anatomy and organization of the central nervous system, including the skull and cervical vertebrae, the meninges, the blood and lymphatic vessels, muscles and nerves of the head and neck, and the structures of the eye, ear, and central nervous system. At a cellular level, the different cell types and the mechanism of transmission across synapses are considered, including excitatory and inhibitory synapses. This is followed by a review of the major control and sensory systems (including movement, information processing, locomotion, reflexes, and the main five senses of sight, hearing, touch, taste, and smell). The integration of these processes into higher functions (such as sleep, consciousness and coma, emotion, memory, and ageing) is discussed, along with the causes and treatments of disorders of diseases such as depression, schizophrenia, epilepsy, addiction, and degenerative diseases.

scholarly journals Sedative-like effect of intraperitoneal GABA administration in the open field test

2016 ◽  
Vol 3 (6) ◽  
pp. 257-262
Author(s):  
Augusto Pascual Italo Gargiulo ◽  
Santiago Marquez Herrero ◽  
Esteban Romanowicz ◽  
Manuel Alejandro Guevara ◽  
Adriana Ines Landa ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Open Field ◽  
Field Test ◽  
Open Field Test ◽  
Sedative Effect ◽  
Male Rats ◽  
Alternative Possibilities ◽  
Gamma Amino Butyric Acid ◽  
Amino Butyric Acid ◽  
The Central Nervous System ◽  
The One

Gamma-Amino Butyric Acid (GABA) is the main inhibitor neurotransmitter of the Central Nervous System (CNS). Its peripheral administration has been matter of discussion. On the one hand, it has been reported that it does not cross the Blood-Brain Barrier (BBB), and, on the other hand, it has been associated with multiple therapeutic regimens and supplements by peripheral administration. The aim of the present study is to elucidate the possibility of a central sedative effect when administered peripherally. An experimental cohort of 90-day-old Holtzman male rats weighing 240-270 g was used. It was divided into 2 groups: saline-controls (n = 9) and GABA treated rats (12.5 mg/kg, n = 9). Both groups were intraperitoneally injected. The motor behavioral patterns displayed in the Opto Varimex (OVM) were studied. Vertical, horizontal, ambulatory and non-ambulatory movements and the number of movements were recorded in an automated way. Horizontal movements constitute the integration of ambulatory and non-ambulatory movements. Student t test was used comparing groups. In this experiment, there were non-significant downward trends in vertical, ambulatory, non-ambulatory and number of movements. Ambulatory and non-ambulatory tendencies acquired significance when treated together as horizontal movements (p < 0.05). We may conclude that peripheral administration of GABA produced a decrease of the horizontal movements in the open field test. It may be interpreted as a sedative effect, suggesting a passage of GABA through BBB, with central effects. However, there are several alternative possibilities to explain present findings. Other experiments will elucidate the implications or scope of the present findings.

Neuronal integration and the depolarizing effects of axonal GABAA receptors

2011 ◽  
Vol 106 (5) ◽  
pp. 2105-2107
Author(s):  
Thomas J. Younts ◽  
Sachin Makani
Keyword(s):  
Gabaa Receptors ◽  
Neurotransmitter Release ◽  
Granule Cells ◽  
Cerebellar Granule Cells ◽  
Gamma Amino Butyric Acid ◽  
Cerebellar Granule ◽  
Amino Butyric Acid ◽  
Acid Type ◽  
The Central Nervous System ◽  
The Impact

Despite their presence throughout the central nervous system, the impact of axonally expressed gamma-amino-butyric acid type-A receptors (GABAARs) on neuronal signaling is just beginning to be understood. A recently published article (Pugh JR and Jahr CE, J Neurosci 31: 565–574, 2011) tackled this important issue by investigating GABAAR-mediated function in axons of cerebellar granule cells. The results of Pugh and Jahr indicate parallel fiber GABAARs enhance neurotransmitter release probability and boost axonal and somatic excitability.

Peptidergic regulation of chromatophore function in the European cuttlefish Sepia officinalis

1996 ◽  
Vol 199 (5) ◽  
pp. 1177-1187 ◽  
Author(s):  
P Loi ◽  
R Saunders ◽  
D Young ◽  
N Tublitz
Keyword(s):  
Central Nervous System ◽  
Nervous System ◽  
Neuromuscular Control ◽  
Sepia Officinalis ◽  
Close Apposition ◽  
Immunoblot Assay ◽  
The Central Nervous System ◽  
The Brain ◽  
Excitatory Transmitter

Color patterning in cephalopod molluscs involves activation of a peripheral chromatophore system that is under neuromuscular control. The complex behavior of individual chromatophores is mediated by a specific set of muscles, the chromatophore muscles, that receive direct innervation from the central nervous system. To date, glutamate is the only excitatory transmitter that has been proposed to act at the chromatophore neuromuscular junction of cephalopods. We present data demonstrating that the chromatophore muscles in the European cuttlefish Sepia officinalis are also regulated by the FMRFamide family of neuropeptides. Using an in vitro chromatophore bioassay, it has been determined that several FMRFamide-related peptides (FaRPs) are potent excitors of the chromatophore muscles, causing chromatophore expansion. Immunocytochemical analyses of the central nervous system using an FMRFamide antibody revealed the presence of FMRFamide-like immunoreactive cell bodies in the posterior chromatophore lobes, the region of the brain containing the chromatophore motoneurons of the fin and mantle. FMRFamide-like immunoreactivity was also seen in the periphery, in the nerves around the chromatophores and in close apposition to the muscles in the chromatophore layer of the fin. HPLC analysis of the fin dermis isolated four bioactive peaks that were FMRFamide-immunoreactive when tested on an immunoblot assay. Two of these peaks co-eluted with known FaRPs, FMRFamide and ALSGDAFLRFamide, a decapeptide isolated from squid. Taken together, these data suggest that the FaRPs are likely to be endogenous excitors of the chromatophore muscles in cephalopods.

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