Acetylcholine

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Acetylcholine

Clinical data
Other names	ACh
ATC code	S01EB09 (WHO)
Physiological data
Source tissues	motor neurons, parasympathetic nervous system, brain
Target tissues	skeletal muscles, brain, many other organs
Receptors	nicotinic, muscarinic
Agonists	nicotine, muscarine, cholinesterase inhibitors
Antagonists	tubocurarine, atropine
Precursor	choline, acetyl-CoA
Biosynthesis	choline acetyltransferase
Metabolism	acetylcholinesterase
Identifiers
IUPAC name 2-Acetoxy-N,N,N-trimethylethanaminium
CAS Number	51-84-3
PubChem CID	187
IUPHAR/BPS	294
DrugBank	EXPT00412
ChemSpider	182
UNII	N9YNS0M02X
KEGG	C01996
ChEBI	CHEBI:15355
ChEMBL	ChEMBL667
E number	E1001(i) (additional chemicals)
CompTox Dashboard (EPA)	DTXSID8075334
ECHA InfoCard	100.000.118
Chemical and physical data
Formula	C7H16NO2
Molar mass	146.210 g·mol−1

Acetylcholine (ACh) is an organic compound that functions in the brain and body of many types of animals (including humans) as a neurotransmitter.^[1] Its name is derived from its chemical structure: it is an ester of acetic acid and choline.^[2] Parts in the body that use or are affected by acetylcholine are referred to as cholinergic.

Acetylcholine is the neurotransmitter used at the neuromuscular junction—in other words, it is the chemical that motor neurons of the nervous system release in order to activate muscles. This property means that drugs that affect cholinergic systems can have very dangerous effects ranging from paralysis to convulsions. Acetylcholine is also a neurotransmitter in the autonomic nervous system, both as an internal transmitter for the sympathetic nervous system and as the final product released by the parasympathetic nervous system.^[1] Acetylcholine is the primary neurotransmitter of the parasympathetic nervous system.^[2][3]

In the brain, acetylcholine functions as a neurotransmitter and as a neuromodulator. The brain contains a number of cholinergic areas, each with distinct functions; such as playing an important role in arousal, attention, memory and motivation.^[4]

Acetylcholine has also been found in cells of non-neural origins as well as microbes. Recently, enzymes related to its synthesis, degradation and cellular uptake have been traced back to early origins of unicellular eukaryotes.^[5] The protist pathogen Acanthamoeba spp. have shown evidence of the presence of ACh, which provides growth and proliferative signals via a membrane located M1-muscarinic receptor homolog.^[6]

Partly because of its muscle-activating function, but also because of its functions in the autonomic nervous system and brain, many important drugs exert their effects by altering cholinergic transmission. Numerous venoms and toxins produced by plants, animals, and bacteria, as well as chemical nerve agents such as Sarin, cause harm by inactivating or hyperactivating muscles through their influences on the neuromuscular junction. Drugs that act on muscarinic acetylcholine receptors, such as atropine, can be poisonous in large quantities, but in smaller doses they are commonly used to treat certain heart conditions and eye problems.^{[citation needed]} Scopolamine, or Diphenhydramine, which also act mainly on muscarinic receptors in an inhibitory fashion in the brain (especially the M₁ receptor) can cause delirium, hallucinations, and amnesia through receptor antagonism at these sites. So far as of 2016, only the M₁ receptor subtype has been implicated in anticholinergic delirium.^[7] The addictive qualities of nicotine are derived from its effects on nicotinic acetylcholine receptors in the brain.