Acidic Amino Acids: Aspartate & Glutamate | MCAT

[@jasminekaur7897]

Thank you so much for your videos! I've watched your amino acid ones so far and I have a much better understanding of practice questions!! :)

[@medcatmcat]

Thank you for the kind comment!

[@medcatmcat]

*Characteristics Also, one thing I forgot in the special characteristics: glutamate is an excitatory neurotransmitter in the nervous system. Do you know the main inhibitory neurotransmitter in the brain?

[@taliahhyjazie1569]

GABA

[@medcatmcat]

@@taliahhyjazie1569 Yep! And glycine, another amino acid, will be another inhibitor neurotransmitter. Fun clinical (not MCAT) fact: tetanospasmin, the toxin released by the bacterium Clostridium tetani (causes tetanus), inhibits release of GABA and glycine, causing a spastic paralysis.

[@HeisenbergMCAT]

I like to remember the one letter abbreviations as follows: ED (erectile dysfunction) is negative just like the respective amino acids!

[@arpitathakkar7950]

It was a great explanation thanks

[@medcatmcat]

You are welcome! I'm glad I could be of help.