Neurotransmitters and Nerve Transmission: A Biology Overview

This assignment delves into the critical role of neurotransmitters in nerve transmission, explaining the process from action potential to the release of neurotransmitters from vesicles. It highlights how these chemical messengers influence signal transmission by changing cell permeability and either stimulating or inhibiting message transmission. The assignment also discusses Alzheimer's disease, detailing how it disrupts neurotransmitter function, leading to memory impairment and cellular degeneration. The breakdown of neurotransmitters and the role of enzymes like acetylcholinesterase are explained, along with the impact of protein misfolding in Alzheimer's. The conclusion emphasizes the importance of neurotransmitters in information relay and how specific neurotransmitters influence signals, with the disease affecting the nervous system and causing memory loss. The assignment provides a comprehensive overview of the topic, linking neurotransmitter function to both normal nerve transmission and the pathology of Alzheimer's disease.

ROLE OF NEUROTRANSMITTERS IN NERVE
TRANSMISSION
NAME OF THE STUDENT:
NAME OF THE UNIVERSITY:

INTRODUCTION
 Nerve transmission is the process of communication between cells which are
used for the process of sending signals from one cell to another (Seyedabadi
et al. 2014)
 The main components of neurotransmission are the neurotransmitters which
are the chemicals involved in the transmission of nerve impulses.
 Proper stimulation of an electric signal triggers the release of the
neurotransmitters from the vesicles which then act as chemical messengers.
 Example of neurotransmitters: dopamine, serotonin (Baldinger et al. 2014).

THE PROCESS OF NERVE TRANSMISSION
Source: Biology 1520. 2019.
• The process of
neurotransmission takes place in
various steps.
• Depolarization of the membrane
after the action potential reaches
the axon terminal.
• Opening of voltage gated
calcium channels and inflow of
Calcium.
• Influx of calcium ions in the
synaptic vesicles for the release
of neurotransmitters.
• Binding of the neurotransmitter

ROLE OF NEUROTRANSMITTERS
 Change the permeability of the cells
for transmission of the signal.
 They stimulate or inhibit the proper
transmission of messages.
 The function of the transmitters are
affected by monoamine oxidase
inhibitors which alleviate the
symptoms of depression (Moller,
Swanepoel and Harvey 2015).

ALZHEIMER’S DISEASE
 It is a progressive kind of disorder
causing the brain cells to
degenerate and ultimately leads to
apoptosis.
 Long term effects include
impairment of memory and loss of
carrying out regular activities.
 There is no specific treatment for
Alzeimer’s disease in humans till
date (Flaten et al. 2014).

ALZEIMER’S DISEASE AND
NEUROTRANSMISSION
Alzheimer’s diseases affect neuro-
transmitters and reduce their normal
functioning.
Brain cells with Alzheimer's disease
secrete excess glutamate leading to
overstimulation of healthy cells.
Brain regions are destroyed impairing
memory, reasoning (Li et al. 2016).

 After the neurotransmitter is released by the
neurotransmitter, it is broken down by specific enzymes
in the enzymatic cleft. For an instance the enzyme acetyl
cholinesterase breaks down acetylcholine which are
absorbed by presynaptic neurons by endocytosis and is
often used for the re-synthesis of the neurotransmitters
which would use further energy from mitochondria (Pereda
2014).
 Abnormal proteins like Beta amyloid and tau cause
protein misfolding causing cell destruction leading to
Alzeihmer’s disease.
EVENTS AFTER BREAKDOWN OF THE NEUROTRANSMISSION PROCESS

CONCLUSION
 Thus there is an important role of neurotransmitters in
relaying the information for transmission of the messages.
 The kind of stimulation or inhibition of the signals depend on
the specific kind of neurotransmitter (Liu et al. 2015).
 Alzheimer's disease is a specific disorder affecting nervous
system causing memory loss.
 Protein misfolding and cellular apoptosis lead to the
progression of the disease.

REFERENCES
 Baldinger, P., Lotan, A., Frey, R., Kasper, S., Lerer, B. and Lanzenberger, R., 2014. Neurotransmitters and electroconvulsive therapy. The
journal of ECT, 30(2), pp.116-121.
 Biology 1520. 2019. Neurons. [online] Available at: http://bio1520.biology.gatech.edu/chemical-and-electrical-signals/neurons/ [Accessed 18
Apr. 2019].
 Flaten, V., Laurent, C., Coelho, J.E., Sandau, U., Batalha, V.L., Burnouf, S., Hamdane, M., Humez, S., Boison, D., Lopes, L.V. and Buée, L.,
2014. From epidemiology to pathophysiology: what about caffeine in Alzheimer's disease?.
 Liu, P., Chen, B., Mailler, R. and Wang, Z.W., 2017. Antidromic-rectifying gap junctions amplify chemical transmission at functionally mixed
electrical-chemical synapses. Nature communications, 8, p.14818.
 Moller, M., Swanepoel, T. and Harvey, B.H., 2015. Neurodevelopmental animal models reveal the convergent role of neurotransmitter
systems, inflammation, and oxidative stress as biomarkers of schizophrenia: implications for novel drug development. ACS chemical
neuroscience, 6(7), pp.987-1016.
 Li, Y., Sun, H., Chen, Z., Xu, H., Bu, G. and Zheng, H., 2016. Implications of GABAergic neurotransmission in Alzheimer’s disease. Frontiers in
aging neuroscience, 8, p.31.
 Nuss, P., 2015. Anxiety disorders and GABA neurotransmission: a disturbance of modulation. Neuropsychiatri
 Pereda, A.E., 2014. Electrical synapses and their functional interactions with chemical synapses. Nature Reviews Neuroscience, 15(4),
p.250.
 Seyedabadi, M., Fakhfouri, G., Ramezani, V., Mehr, S.E. and Rahimian, R., 2014. The role of serotonin in memory: interactions with
neurotransmitters and downstream signaling. Experimental brain research, 232(3), pp.723-738.

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