title: Excitatory amino acid transporters: recent insights into molecular mechanisms, novel modes of modulation and new therapeutic possibilities.
abstract: The five excitatory amino acid transporters (EAAT1-5) mediating the synaptic uptake of the major excitatory neurotransmitter glutamate are differently expressed throughout the CNS and at the synaptic level. Although EAATs are crucial for normal excitatory neurotransmission, explorations into the physiological functions mediated by the different transporter subtypes and their respective therapeutic potential have so far been sparse, in no small part due to the limited selection of pharmacological tools available. In the present update, we outline important new insights into the molecular compositions of EAATs and their intricate transport process, the novel approaches to pharmacological modulation of the transporters that have emerged, and interesting new perspectives in EAAT as drug targets proposed in recent years.
authors.affiliation: Department of Drug Design and Pharmacology, Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences, University of Copenhagen, DK-2100 Copenhagen OE, Denmark. Electronic address: aaj@sund.ku.dk.
authors.forename: Anders A
authors.initials: AA
authors.lastname: Jensen
authors.affiliation: Institute of Complex Systems, Zelluläre Biophysik (ICS-4), Forschungszentrum Jülich, Germany.
authors.forename: Christoph
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Fahlke
authors.affiliation: Department of Drug Design and Pharmacology, Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences, University of Copenhagen, DK-2100 Copenhagen OE, Denmark.
authors.forename: Walden E
authors.initials: WE
authors.lastname: Bjørn-Yoshimoto
authors.affiliation: Department of Drug Design and Pharmacology, Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences, University of Copenhagen, DK-2100 Copenhagen OE, Denmark.
authors.forename: Lennart
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Bunch
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001692:Biological Transport / Q000502:physiology; D002490:Central Nervous System / Q000378:metabolism*; D050491:Glutamate Plasma Membrane Transport Proteins / Q000502:physiology*; D018698:Glutamic Acid / Q000378:metabolism*; D006801:Humans; D009435:Synaptic Transmission / Q000502:physiology
chemical_list: D050491:Glutamate Plasma Membrane Transport Proteins; D018698:Glutamic Acid