Glutamate Receptors: Functional Properties and Brain Mechanisms

This lecture covers the two most important types of ionotropic glutamate receptors, NMDA and AMPA, discussing their functional properties such as reversal potentials, conductance, and diffusion. It explains the differences between EPSPs and EPSCs, the time-course variations in dendrites and soma, and the delivery of glutamate receptors to synapses. Additionally, it explores Long-Term Potentiation (LTP) and Long-Term Depression (LTD), detailing their induction and expression mechanisms. The lecture also touches on STDP and the role of dendritic spines in localized biochemical reactions, signaling, and neuronal network rewiring.