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Article: Neurotransmitters
- Article from:
- Chemistry: Foundations and Applications
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CopyrightCOPYRIGHT 2004 The Gale Group, Inc. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group. (Hide copyright information)
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Neurotransmitters
Neurotransmitters are chemical messengers produced by the nervous systems of higher organisms in order to relay a nerve impulse from one cell to another cell. The two cells may be nerve cells, also called neurons, or one of the cells may be a different type, such as a muscle or gland cell. A chemical messenger is necessary for rapid communication between cells if there are small gaps of 20 to 50 nanometers (7.874
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inches), called synapses or synaptic clefts, between the two cells. The two cells are referred to as either presynaptic or postsynaptic. The term "presynaptic" refers to the neuron that produces and releases ...