Researched
Neurotransmitters (Chemical Signals)
Otto Loewi's frog-heart experiment (1921) proved that nerve cells signal with chemical messengers.
Open in the interactive tree →Otto Loewi stimulated the vagus nerve of one frog heart and showed that the fluid around it slowed a second heart, proving that the nerve releases a chemical, later identified as acetylcholine. He shared the 1936 Nobel Prize with Henry Dale. It settled the 'soup versus sparks' debate for synapses and led to the neurotransmitter concept that underlies psychiatric drugs.
Prerequisites
Unlocks
- Psychiatric Drugs1952Psychiatric drugs act on chemical transmission at synapses
- Pain Gate and Endorphins1965-1975Endorphins are chemical messengers that damp pain signals.
- L-DOPA for Parkinson's1967