What is acetylecholine?
Acetylcholine is a chemical neurotransmitter which is released by the nerves in the central nervous system (brain and spinal cord) as well as by nerves in the peripheral nervous system.
Acetylcholine is a neurotransmitter that allows nerves to communicate with each other and also with other cells of the cells of the body.
Acetylcholine is released from a nerve ending (terminal) through the gap (synaptic cleft) between two nerve cells and carries information across this gap to the other cell.
Acetlycholine is released from the ends of certain types of nerve cells when they are stimulated. It transmits a signal to an adjacent (target) nerve or muscle cell by binding to receptors on the target cell surface.
Advertisement
^ top
Important acetylcholine facts
- choline, a B-vitamin co-factor is important in the synthesis of acetylcholine
- neurons that synthesize and release acetylecholine are called cholinergic neurons
- muscle tissue stimulation is especially reliant on acetylcholine
- acetylcholine is severely reduced in the brains of persons with Alzheimer’s disease
- acetylecholine is important in cognition and especially in memory and learning
- there is some evidence that increased dietary choline can increase both the production and use of acetylcholine
- an imbalance between acetylcholine and dopamine is associated with some of the symptoms of Parkinson’s disease
- acetylcholine was the first neurotransmitter identified
^ top
Advertisement
Why acetylcholine is important
Low levels of acetylcholine in the brain and nerve cells can produce the following symptoms:
- depression
- low energy
- fatigue
- inability to think clearly
- slow reflexes
- poor memory
- nervousness
- anxiety
The symptoms above disappear once the body get adequate levels of acetylcholine (usually through the diet in the form of foods high in choline).
There is some evidence that when supplements of acetylcholine are used, energy, mood and brain function improve quite dramatically.
^ top
^ top
references
- Jorm AF, Christensen H, Griffiths KM, Parslow RA, Rodgers B, Blewitt KA. Effectiveness of complementary and self-help treatments for anxiety disorders. MJA 2004; 181 (7 Suppl): S29-S46, accessed 21 Aug 07
- Marieb EM, Hoehn K. Human Anatomy & Physiology. 7th edition, 2006. Benjamin Cummings Publishing
- Tortora GJ, Derrickson BH. Principles of Anatomy & Physiology. 11th edition, 2005. Wiley Publishing
More information
To learn more, go to the
NOTE: Mega doses of any type of vitamin, mineral, amino acid or herbal supplement cannot cure illnesses and in fact can be very dangerous and produce toxic side effects and interfere with medicine you are taking. Always ensure you consult your doctor before taking any type of complementary supplements.
Disclaimer: This guide is not intended to be used for diagnostic or prescriptive purposes. For any treatment or diagnosis of illness, please see your doctor.
^ top
Latest Health & Nutrition News
\n";
for ($i = 0; $i < count($arr_xml['URL']); $i++) {
if( isset($arr_xml['PostID'][$i]) && $arr_xml['PostID'][$i] > 0 ) continue;
echo "
".$arr_xml['BeforeText'][$i]." ".$arr_xml['Text'][$i]." ".$arr_xml['AfterText'][$i]."\n";
}
echo "";
}
}
function tla_updateLocalXML($url, $file, $time_out)
{
if($handle = fopen($file, "a")){
fwrite($handle, "\n");
fclose($handle);
}
if($xml = file_get_contents_tla($url, $time_out)) {
$xml = substr($xml, strpos($xml,''));
if ($handle = fopen($file, "w")) {
fwrite($handle, $xml);
fclose($handle);
}
}
}
function tla_getLocalXML($file)
{
$contents = "";
if($handle = fopen($file, "r")){
$contents = fread($handle, filesize($file)+1);
fclose($handle);
}
return $contents;
}
function file_get_contents_tla($url, $time_out)
{
$result = "";
$url = parse_url($url);
if ($handle = @fsockopen ($url["host"], 80)) {
if(function_exists("socket_set_timeout")) {
socket_set_timeout($handle,$time_out,0);
} else if(function_exists("stream_set_timeout")) {
stream_set_timeout($handle,$time_out,0);
}
fwrite ($handle, "GET $url[path]?$url[query] HTTP/1.0\r\nHost: $url[host]\r\nConnection: Close\r\n\r\n");
while (!feof($handle)) {
$result .= @fread($handle, 40960);
}
fclose($handle);
}
return $result;
}
function tla_decodeXML($xmlstg)
{
if( !function_exists('html_entity_decode') ){
function html_entity_decode($string)
{
// replace numeric entities
$string = preg_replace('~([0-9a-f]+);~ei', 'chr(hexdec("\1"))', $string);
$string = preg_replace('~([0-9]+);~e', 'chr(\1)', $string);
// replace literal entities
$trans_tbl = get_html_translation_table(HTML_ENTITIES);
$trans_tbl = array_flip($trans_tbl);
return strtr($string, $trans_tbl);
}
}
$out = "";
$retarr = "";
preg_match_all ("/<(.*?)>(.*?)", $xmlstg, $out, PREG_SET_ORDER);
$search_ar = array('<', '>', '"');
$replace_ar = array('<', '>', '"');
$n = 0;
while (isset($out[$n]))
{
$retarr[$out[$n][1]][] = str_replace($search_ar, $replace_ar,html_entity_decode(strip_tags($out[$n][0])));
$n++;
}
return $retarr;
}
tla_ads();
?>
Advertisement
Tools
BMI Calculator
Body Fat Calculator
Target Heart Rate
Health Conditions A-Z
Health Glossary A-Z
Ask an expert
Ask a Fitness Question
Fitness - Q&A
Ask a Health Question
Health - Q&A
Ask a Heart Health Question
Heart Health - Q&A
Ask a Spiritual Awareness Question
Spiritual Awareness - Q&A
Ask a Relationships Question
Relationships - Q&A
Ask a Nutrition Question
Nutrition - Q&A