Glutamate is the major excitatory neurotransmitter in the mammalian brain and its synaptic levels are tightly regulated by glutamate transporters, located primarily on glia. In the nematode, C. Elegans, the major excitatory neurotransmitter is acetylcholine, but glutamate neurotransmission remains critical for a number of functions. Glutamate synapses in C. Elegans are not surrounded by glia and of the six glutamate transporters expressed, only one is found in neurons. So, what is the role of glutamate transport in C. Elegans? In the Bauer lab we are studying worms with glutamate transporter deletions. So far, we have found changes in simple behaviors, learning and memory, metabolism, and even lifespan!
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/
