Muscimol as an ionotropic GABA receptor agonist.
Neurochemical Research October 1, 2014 DOI: 10.1007/s11064-014-1245-y (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Historical analysis Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Key points | Describes muscimol's discovery as a selective GABA-A receptor agonist and its role as a lead compound for developing other GABAergic drugs. |
Abstract
Muscimol, a psychoactive isoxazole from Amanita muscaria and related mushrooms, has proved to be a remarkably selective agonist at ionotropic receptors for the inhibitory neurotransmitter GABA. This historic overview highlights the discovery and development of muscimol and related compounds as a GABA agonist by Danish and Australian neurochemists. Muscimol is widely used as a ligand to probe GABA receptors and was the lead compound in the development of a range of GABAergic agents including nipecotic acid, tiagabine, 4,5,6,7-tetrahydroisoxazolo(5,4-c)pyridin-3-ol, (Gaboxadol(®)) and 4-PIOL.