The glutamatergic system outside the CNS and in cancer biology

摘要

Glutamate is a major excitatory neurotransmitter in the CNS.The signalling machinery consists of: glutamate receptors,which are responsible for signal input;plasma glutamate transporters,which are responsible for signal termination;and vesicular glutamate transporters for signal output through exo-cytic release.Recently,data have suggested that the glutamatergic system plays an important role in non-neuronal tissues.In addition,the expression of glutamatergic system has been implicated in tumour biology.This review outlines the evidence,which suggests that the glutamatergic system may have an important role in cancer biology.