[Glutamate neurotransmission, stress and hormone secretion]

Glutamate neurotransmission has been investigated in relation to several physiological processes (learning, memory) as well as to neurodegenerative and other disorders. Little attention has been paid to its involvement in neuroendocrine response during stress. Penetration of excitatory amino acids from blood to the brain is limited by the blood-brain barrier. As a consequence, several toxic effects but also bioavailability for therapeutic purposes are reduced. A free access to circulating glutamate is possible only in brain structures lacking the blood-brain barrier or under conditions of its increased permeability. Excitatory amino acids were shown to stimulate the pituitary hormone release, though the mechanism of their action is still not fully understood. Stress exposure in experimental animals induced specific changes in mRNA levels coding the glutamate receptor subunits in the hippocampus and hypothalamus. The results obtained with the use of glutamate receptor antagonists indicate that a number of specific receptor subtypes contribute to the stimulation of ACTH release during stress. The authors provided also data on the role of NMDA receptors in the control of catecholamine release, particularly in stress-induced secretion of epinephrine. These results were the first piece of evidence on the involvement of endogenous excitatory amino acids in neuroendocrine activation during stress. Neurotoxic effects of glutamate in animals are well described, especially after its administration in the neonatal period. In men, glutamate toxicity and its use as a food additive are a continuous subject of discussions. The authors found an increase in plasma cortisol and norepinephrine, but not epinephrine and prolactin, in response to the administration of a high dose of glutamate. It cannot be excluded that these effects might be induced even by lower doses in situations with increased vulnerability to glutamate action (age, individual variability). (Tab. 1, Fig. 6, Ref. 44.).