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Tuesday, June 23, 2020
This post is a list of major neurotransmitters. There are 8 neurotransmitters listed below alphabetically. License: CC BY-SA 3.0
1. Adenosine (stress response)
"In general, adenosine has an inhibitory effect in the central nervous system (CNS). Caffeine's stimulatory effects are credited primarily (although not entirely) to its capacity to block adenosine receptors, thereby reducing the inhibitory tonus of adenosine in the CNS." (Wikipedia: Adenosine, 6.18.21 UTC 01:23)
2. Dopamine (reward, motor control, hormone release)
"The brain includes several distinct dopamine pathways, one of which plays a major role in the motivational component of reward-motivated behavior... Other brain dopamine pathways are involved in motor control and in controlling the release of various hormones." (Wikipedia: Dopamine, 8.6.21 UTC 16:56)
3. Endorphins (pain inhibitor)
"The principle function of endorphins is to inhibit the communication of pain signals. Endorphins may also produce a feeling of euphoria..." (Wikipedia: Endorphins, 7.23.21 UTC 14:34)
4. GABA (inhibitor)
"Gamma-Aminobutyric acid or GABA is the chief inhibitory neurotransmitter in the developmentally mature mammalian central nervous system." (Wikipedia: GABA, 7.6.21 UTC 16:21)
5. Glutamate (excitation)
"[Glutamate] is used by every major excitatory function in the vertebrate brain, accounting in total for well over 90% of the synaptic connections in the human brain." (Wikipedia: Glutamate, 7.7.21 UTC 01:24)
6. Oxytocin (social bonding)
"[Oxytocin] is normally produced in the hypothalamus and released by the posterior pituitary. It plays a role in social bonding sexual reproduction, childbirth, and the period after childbirth." (Wikipedia: Oxytocin, 10.26.22 UTC 18:03)
7. Noradrenaline (stress response)
"The general function of norepinephrine is to mobilize the brain and body for action. Norepinephrine release is lowest during sleep, rises during wakefulness, and reaches much higher levels during situations of stress or danger, in the so-called fight or flight response." (Wikipedia: Norepinephrine, 10.31.22 UTC 02:57)
8. Serotonin (happiness, cognition, reward, learning, memory)
"[Serotonin's] biological function is complex and multifaceted, modulating cognition, reward, learning, memory, and numerous physiological processes such as vomiting and vasoconstriction." (Wikipedia: Serotonin, 9.17.22 UTC 07:54)