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Review
. 2020 Jun;45(6):1344-1353.
doi: 10.1007/s11064-020-03014-1. Epub 2020 Mar 18.

D-Serine, the Shape-Shifting NMDA Receptor Co-agonist

Joseph T Coyle  1 , Darrick Balu  2   3 , Herman Wolosker  4
Affiliations
Review

D-Serine, the Shape-Shifting NMDA Receptor Co-agonist

Joseph T Coyle et al. Neurochem Res. 2020 Jun.

Abstract

Shape-shifting, a phenomenon wide-spread in folklore, refers to the ability to physically change from one identity to another, typically from an innocuous entity to a destructive one. The amino acid D-serine over the last 25 years has "shape-shifted" into several identities: a purported glial transmitter activating N-methyl-D-aspartate receptors (NMDARs), a co-transmitter concentrated in excitatory glutamatergic neurons, an autocrine that is released at dendritic spines to prime their post-synaptic NMDARs for an instantaneous response to glutamate and an excitotoxic moiety released from inflammatory (A1) astrocytes. This article will review evidence in support of these scenarios and the artifacts that misled investigators of the true identity of D-serine.

Keywords: Astrocytes; D-Serine; Excitotoxicity; Glutamic acid; Serine racemase; γ-Amino-butyric acid (GABA).

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