Glutamic acid and Alzheimer's disease.

Neurotoxicity mediated by glutamate is thought to play a role in neurological disorders such a stroke, ischemia and slowly progressing neurodegenerative diseases. However, the contribution of excitotoxicity in neuronal death that occurs in Alzheimer's disease is still an open question. This paper briefly reviews the main lines of evidence supporting a participation of excess glutamatergic neurotransmission in the neurodegeneration of selective groups of neurons in this disease.