Muscimol as an ionotropic GABA receptor agonist.
Neurochemical research October 1, 2014 Graham A R Johnston
Muscimol, a psychoactive compound from Amanita muscaria mushrooms, acts as a highly selective activator of GABA-A receptors, which are key inhibitory receptors in the brain. This historic overview describes how Danish and Australian neurochemists discovered and developed muscimol and related compounds as GABA agonists. Muscimol is widely used as a research tool to study GABA receptors and served as the starting point for creating several GABAergic drugs, including nipecotic acid, tiagabine, Gaboxadol, and 4-PIOL.