Glutamate and Glutamine in Brain Disorders

Abstract

Diseases of the brain account for much human suffering and place a huge burden on the health care systems. Thus, research into the pathology of brain diseases and improved pharmacotherapy is of significant value. In this respect, knowledge on malfunctions of metabolic homeostasis related to the neurotransmission process is still limited. As evident from this chapter, failure of the metabolic homeostasis of the two amino acids of major importance, namely glutamate and glutamine, is a hallmark of a wide range of both neurological and psychiatric diseases. This chapter deals with representative brain diseases as well as the methodology of research related to metabolism. In addition, future need for research and potential new targets for pharmacotherapy are discussed.