Abstract
4-AMINOBUTYRATE (4-AB) has been found widespread in animals, plants and micro-organisms1–4. Because it is especially concentrated in brain5, a more or less direct relation with neurotransmission mechanisms (as 4-aminobutyrylcholine6, for example) has been suggested7,8. The transamination of 4-AB with 2-oxoglutarate to yield glutamate and succinic semialdehyde9,10, resulting in a by-pass to the Krebs cycle, which has been shown in brain and in some micro-organisms, tentatively suggests a more general pathway11. Although 4-AB, as well as the enzyme that produces it from glutamate-L-glutamate 1-carboxylyase, are present in appreciable quantities in a high variety of plants12, little is known about 4-AB metabolism in plant tissues.
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GONZÁLEZ, P., CASCALES, M., MAYOR, F. et al. 4-Aminobutyrate I-14C Metabolism in Helianthus tuberosus Tissues grown in vitro. Nature 201, 300 (1964). https://doi.org/10.1038/201300a0
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/201300a0
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