Some prominent examples of biogenic amines include:
- Acetylcholine
The chemical compound acetylcholine is a neurotransmitter in both the peripheral nervous system and central nervous system in many organisms including humans. Acetylcholine is one of many neurotransmitters in the autonomic nervous system and the only neurotransmitter used in the motor division...
(ACh) - the first neurotransmitter identified, in 1914; involved with Parasympathetic Nervous System but predominantly acts at the Neuromuscular JunctionA neuromuscular junction is the synapse or junction of the axon terminal of a motoneuron with the motor end plate, the highly-excitable region of muscle fiber plasma membrane responsible for initiation of action potentials across the muscle's surface, ultimately causing the muscle to contract...
(NMJ)
- Histamine
Histamine is a biogenic amine involved in local immune responses as well as regulating physiological function in the gut and acting as a neurotransmitter. Histamine triggers the inflammatory response. As part of an immune response to foreign pathogens, histamine is produced by basophils and by...
- a substance derived from the amino acidAmino acids are molecules containing an amine group, a carboxylic acid group and one of the twenty R-groups. These molecules are particularly important in biochemistry, where this term refers to alpha-amino acids with the general formula H
2NCHRCOOH, where R is an organic substituent...
histidineHistidine is one of the 20 standard amino acids present in proteins. Nutritionally, histidine is considered an essential amino acid in human infants. After reaching several years of age, humans begin to synthesize it and it thus becomes a non-essential amino acid...
that acts as a neurotransmitterNeurotransmitters are endogenous chemicals which relay, amplify, and modulate signals between a neuron and another cell. Neurotransmitters are packaged into synaptic vesicles that cluster beneath the membrane on the presynaptic side of a synapse, and are released into the synaptic cleft, where they...
mediating arousal and attention, as well as a pro-inflammatoryInflammation is the complex biological response of vascular tissues to harmful stimuli, such as pathogens, damaged cells, or irritants. Inflammation is a protective attempt by the organism to remove the injurious stimuli as well as initiate the healing process for the tissue. Inflammation is not a...
signal released from mast cellA mast cell is a resident cell of several types of tissues and contains many granules rich in histamine and heparin. Although best known for their role in allergy and anaphylaxis, mast cells play an important protective role as well, being intimately involved in wound healing and defense against...
s in response to allergicAllergy is a disorder of the immune system often also referred to as atopy. Allergic reactions occur to normally harmless environmental substances known as allergens; these reactions are acquired, predictable, and rapid. Strictly, allergy is one of four forms of hypersensitivity and is called type...
reactions or tissue damage.
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Examples
Some prominent examples of biogenic amines include:
- Acetylcholine
The chemical compound acetylcholine is a neurotransmitter in both the peripheral nervous system and central nervous system in many organisms including humans. Acetylcholine is one of many neurotransmitters in the autonomic nervous system and the only neurotransmitter used in the motor division...
(ACh) - the first neurotransmitter identified, in 1914; involved with Parasympathetic Nervous System but predominantly acts at the Neuromuscular JunctionA neuromuscular junction is the synapse or junction of the axon terminal of a motoneuron with the motor end plate, the highly-excitable region of muscle fiber plasma membrane responsible for initiation of action potentials across the muscle's surface, ultimately causing the muscle to contract...
(NMJ)
- Histamine
Histamine is a biogenic amine involved in local immune responses as well as regulating physiological function in the gut and acting as a neurotransmitter. Histamine triggers the inflammatory response. As part of an immune response to foreign pathogens, histamine is produced by basophils and by...
- a substance derived from the amino acidAmino acids are molecules containing an amine group, a carboxylic acid group and one of the twenty R-groups. These molecules are particularly important in biochemistry, where this term refers to alpha-amino acids with the general formula H
2NCHRCOOH, where R is an organic substituent...
histidineHistidine is one of the 20 standard amino acids present in proteins. Nutritionally, histidine is considered an essential amino acid in human infants. After reaching several years of age, humans begin to synthesize it and it thus becomes a non-essential amino acid...
that acts as a neurotransmitterNeurotransmitters are endogenous chemicals which relay, amplify, and modulate signals between a neuron and another cell. Neurotransmitters are packaged into synaptic vesicles that cluster beneath the membrane on the presynaptic side of a synapse, and are released into the synaptic cleft, where they...
mediating arousal and attention, as well as a pro-inflammatoryInflammation is the complex biological response of vascular tissues to harmful stimuli, such as pathogens, damaged cells, or irritants. Inflammation is a protective attempt by the organism to remove the injurious stimuli as well as initiate the healing process for the tissue. Inflammation is not a...
signal released from mast cellA mast cell is a resident cell of several types of tissues and contains many granules rich in histamine and heparin. Although best known for their role in allergy and anaphylaxis, mast cells play an important protective role as well, being intimately involved in wound healing and defense against...
s in response to allergicAllergy is a disorder of the immune system often also referred to as atopy. Allergic reactions occur to normally harmless environmental substances known as allergens; these reactions are acquired, predictable, and rapid. Strictly, allergy is one of four forms of hypersensitivity and is called type...
reactions or tissue damage. Histamine is also an important stimulant of HCl secretion by the stomach through histamine H2 receptors.
- Tyramine
Tyramine is a naturally-occurring monoamine compound and trace amine derived from the amino acid tyrosine. Tyramine acts as a catecholamine releasing agent...
- a substance that is found in many common foods, and is associated with increased blood pressure and headaches.
- Serotonin
Serotonin is a monoamine neurotransmitter. It is found extensively in the gastrointestinal tract of animals, and about 80 to 90 percent of the human body's total serotonin is located in the enterochromaffin cells in the gut, where it is used to regulate intestinal movements...
- a central nervous systemThe central nervous system is the part of the nervous system that functions to coordinate the activity of all parts of the bodies of bilaterian animals—that is, all animals more advanced than sponges or jellyfish. In vertebrates, the central nervous system is enclosed in the meninges. It contains...
neurotransmitter involved in regulating mood, sleep, appetite, and sexuality.
- The three catecholamine
Catecholamines are sympathomimetic "fight-or-flight" hormones that are released by the adrenal glands in response to stress. They are part of the sympathetic nervous system....
neurotransmitters:
- Norepinephrine
Noradrenaline or norepinephrine is a catecholamine with dual roles as a hormone and a neurotransmitter....
(noradrenaline) - a neurotransmitter involved in sleep and wakefulness, attention, and feeding behavior, as well as a stress hormoneStress hormones such as cortisol, GH and norepinephrine are released at periods of high stress. The hormone regulating system is known as the endocrine system...
released by the adrenal glands that regulates the sympathetic nervous systemThe Sympathetic Nervous System is a branch of the autonomic nervous system along with the enteric nervous system and parasympathetic nervous system. It is always active at a basal level and becomes more active during times of stress...
.
- Epinephrine
Epinephrine is a hormone and neurotransmitter that participates in the "fight or flight" response of the sympathetic nervous system...
(adrenaline) - an adrenal stress hormone, as well as a neurotransmitter present at lower levels in the brain.
- Dopamine
Dopamine is a neurotransmitter occurring in a wide variety of animals, including both vertebrates and invertebrates. In the brain, this phenethylamine functions as a neurotransmitter, activating the five types of dopamine receptors — D
1, D
2, D
3, D
4, and...
- a neurotransmitter involved in motivation, reward, addiction, behavioral reinforcement, and coordination of bodily movement.
- Tryptamine
Tryptamine is a monoamine alkaloid found in plants, fungi, and animals. It is based around the indole ring structure, and is chemically related to the amino acid tryptophan, from which its name is derived...
- a monoamine alkaloidAlkaloids are naturally occurring chemical compounds containing basic nitrogen atoms. The name derives from the word alkaline and was used to describe any nitrogen-containing base. Alkaloids are produced by a large variety of organisms, including bacteria, fungi, plants, and animals and are part of...
found in traceTrace amines are endogenous compounds structurally related to classical biogenic amines, such as catecholamines, serotonin and histamine. Trace amines include p-tyramine, β-phenylethylamine, tryptamine, octopamine, and 3-iodothyronamine, and are found in the nervous systems of animals from insects...
amounts in the brainThe brain is the center of the nervous system in all vertebrate, and most invertebrate, animals. Some primitive animals such as jellyfish and starfish have a decentralized nervous system without a brain, while sponges lack any nervous system at all...
s of mammalMammals are a class of vertebrate animals whose females are characterized by the possession of mammary glands while both males and females are characterized by sweat glands, hair, three middle ear bones used in hearing, and a neocortex region in the brain.Mammals are divided into three main...
s, and believed to play a role as a neuromodulator or neurotransmitterNeurotransmitters are endogenous chemicals which relay, amplify, and modulate signals between a neuron and another cell. Neurotransmitters are packaged into synaptic vesicles that cluster beneath the membrane on the presynaptic side of a synapse, and are released into the synaptic cleft, where they...
.
Physiological importance
There is a distinction between
endogenousThe word endogenous means "proceeding from within", the opposite of exogenous.-Biology:Endogenous substances are those that originate from within an organism, tissue, or cell . Endogenous retrovirus are caused by ancient infections of germ cells in humans, mammals and other vertebrates...
and
exogenousExogenous refers to an action or object coming from outside a system. It is the opposite of endogenous, something generated from within the system....
biogenic amines. Endogenous amines are produced in many different tissues (for example: adrenaline in
adrenal medullaThe adrenal medulla is part of the adrenal gland. It is located at the center of the gland, being surrounded by the adrenal cortex.-Basic:The adrenal medulla consists of irregularly shaped cells grouped around blood vessels. These cells are intimately connected with the sympathetic division of the...
or histamine in mast cells and
liverThe liver is a vital organ present in vertebrates and some other animals; it has a wide range of functions, including detoxification, protein synthesis, and production of biochemicals necessary for digestion...
). The amines are transmitted locally or via the blood system. The exogenous amines are directly absorbed from food in the
intestineIn anatomy, the intestine is the segment of the alimentary canal extending from the stomach to the anus and, in humans and other mammals, consists of two segments, the small intestine and the large intestine...
. Alcohol can increase the absorption rate. The monoamineoxidase (
MAOMonoamine oxidases are enzymes that catalyze the oxidation of monoamines. They are found bound to the outer membrane of mitochondria in most cell types in the body. The enzyme was discovered by Mary Hare in the liver, and received the name of tyramine oxidase...
) breaks down biogenic amines and prevents excessive
resorptionResorption is a process by which a structure is remodeled.Types include:* Bone resorption* Root resorption...
. MAO inhibitors (MAOI) are also used as medications for the treatment of depression to prevent MAO from breaking down amines important for positive mood.
External links
- The Biogenic Amines - Neuroscience 2nd edition, Dale Purves
Dale Purves is Director of the Center for Cognitive Neuroscience and George Barth Geller Professor for Research in Neurobiology at Duke University. He received a B.A. from Yale University in 1960 and an M.D. from the Harvard Medical School in 1964...
et al.