A half-century of neurotransmitter research: Impact on neurology and psychiatry (nobel lecture)

The debate whether electrical stimuli (the sparks) or chemical compounds (the soup) are the transmitting agents for signals in the central nervous system was finally settled with the demonstration of the role of the catecholamines. The development of a sensitive color assay allowed it to be established that dopamine is an important neurotransmitter and is concentrated in regions of the brain responsible for the control of motor behavior. These results led to the administration Of L-DOPA, a precursor of dopamine (see scheme), to treat the symptoms of Parkinson's disease.