The development of positron emission tomography ( PET ) tracer for glutamate AMPA receptors and its application to human biology and clinics

Psychiatric and neurological disorders severely compromised patients' quality of life. Despite their urgent needs, the development of diagnostics and therapeutics based on the biological basis has made only little progress. This is due to limited evidence on the biological basis of these disorders in humans. Synapses are fundamental structural units of neurotransmission, and neuropsychiatric disorders are considered as 'synapse diseases'. Thus, a translational approach based on synaptic physiology is important to understand these disorders. Excitatory glutamatergic synapses play principal roles in neuronal functions. Glutamate α-amino-3-hydroxy-5-methyl-4-isoxazole propionic acid receptor (AMPAR) is a fundamental molecule of glutamatergic neurotransmission and therefore is considered to be a promising translational target. Here we review the limitations of current diagnostics and therapeutics of psychiatric disorders and claim the essential need for the promotion of translational medicine based on the synaptic physiology of AMPAR. Further, we introduce our recent translational challenge to tackle these diseases by targeting AMPARs.