Brain uptake of glutamate: Food for thought

Glutamate transporters in cells of the central nervous system play a key ro le, not only in providing glutamate for metabolic and protein synthesis pur poses, but also in terminating glutamate's synaptic actions and keeping the extracellular glutamate concentration below levels that cause neuronal dea th. Recent advances in our understanding of how glutamate transport is powe red allow a prediction of how glutamate transport will fail in stroke, rele asing excess glutamate that triggers the death of neurons, thereby causing mental and physical handicap.