Definitions for kainic acid
kainic acid

WiktionaryRate this definition:0.0 / 0 votes

1. kainic acidnoun

   A heterocyclic dicarboxylic acid isolated from certain red algae; used as an anthelmintic in Japan.

2. Etymology: From 海人草

WikipediaRate this definition:0.0 / 0 votes

1. Kainic acid

   Kainic acid, or kainate, is an acid that naturally occurs in some seaweed. Kainic acid is a potent neuroexcitatory amino acid agonist that acts by activating receptors for glutamate, the principal excitatory neurotransmitter in the central nervous system. Glutamate is produced by the cell's metabolic processes and there are four major classifications of glutamate receptors: NMDA receptors, AMPA receptors, kainate receptors, and the metabotropic glutamate receptors. Kainic acid is an agonist for kainate receptors, a type of ionotropic glutamate receptor. Kainate receptors likely control a sodium channel that produces excitatory postsynaptic potentials (EPSPs) when glutamate binds.Kainic acid is commonly injected into laboratory animal models to study the effects of experimental ablation. Kainic acid is a direct agonist of the glutamic kainate receptors and large doses of concentrated solutions produce immediate neuronal death by overstimulating neurons to death. Such damage and death of neurons is referred to as an excitotoxic lesion. Thus, in large, concentrated doses kainic acid can be considered a neurotoxin, and in small doses of dilute solution kainic acid will chemically stimulate neurons. In fact, kainate seems to regulate serotonergic activity in the vertebrate retina.Electrical stimulation of designated areas of the brain are generally administered by passing an electric current through a wire that is inserted into the brain to lesion a particular area of the brain. Electrical stimulation indiscriminately destroys anything in the vicinity of the electrode tip, including neural bodies and axons of neurons passing through; therefore it is difficult to attribute the effects of the lesion to a single area. Chemical stimulation is typically administered through a cannula that is inserted into the brain via stereotactic surgery. Chemical stimulation, while more complicated than electrical stimulation, has the distinct advantage of activating cell bodies, but not nearby axons, because only cell bodies and subsequent dendrites contain glutamate receptors. Therefore, chemical stimulation by kainic acid is more localized than electrical stimulation. Both chemical and electrical lesions potentially cause additional damage to the brain due to the very nature of the inserted electrode or cannula. Therefore, the most effective ablation studies are performed in comparison to a sham lesion that duplicates all the steps of producing a brain lesion except the one that actually causes the brain damage, that is, injection of kainic acid or administration of an electrical shock.

WikidataRate this definition:0.0 / 0 votes

1. Kainic acid

   Kainic acid is a natural marine acid present in some seaweed. It is a specific agonist for the kainate receptor used as an ionotropic glutamate receptor which mimics the effect of glutamate. Along with quisqualate, it is used in experiments to distinguish a receptor from the other ionotropic receptors for glutamate such as NMDA and AMPA.

U.S. National Library of MedicineRate this definition:0.0 / 0 votes

1. Kainic Acid

   (2S-(2 alpha,3 beta,4 beta))-2-Carboxy-4-(1-methylethenyl)-3-pyrrolidineacetic acid. Ascaricide obtained from the red alga Digenea simplex. It is a potent excitatory amino acid agonist at some types of excitatory amino acid receptors and has been used to discriminate among receptor types. Like many excitatory amino acid agonists it can cause neurotoxicity and has been used experimentally for that purpose.

How to pronounce kainic acid?

1. Alex

   US English

   David

   US English

   Mark

   US English

   Daniel

   British

   Libby

   British

   Mia

   British

   Karen

   Australian

   Hayley

   Australian

   Natasha

   Australian

   Veena

   Indian

   Priya

   Indian

   Neerja

   Indian

   Zira

   US English

   Oliver

   British

   Wendy

   British

   Fred

   US English

   Tessa

   South African

How to say kainic acid in sign language?

Numerology

1. Chaldean Numerology

   The numerical value of kainic acid in Chaldean Numerology is: 4

2. Pythagorean Numerology

   The numerical value of kainic acid in Pythagorean Numerology is: 1

References

1. ^ Wiktionary
   https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/Kainic_Acid
2. ^ Wikipedia
   https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kainic_Acid
3. ^ Wikidata
   https://www.wikidata.org/w/index.php?search=kainic acid