The
a-amino-3-hydroxy-5-methyl-4-isoxazolepropionic acid receptor (also known as
AMPA receptor,
AMPAR, or
quisqualate receptor) is a non-
NMDA-type
ionotropic transmembrane receptor for
glutamate that mediates fast
synaptic transmission in the
central nervous system (CNS). Its name is derived from its ability to be activated by the artificial glutamate analog AMPA. The receptor was first named the "quisqualate receptor" by Watkins and colleagues after a naturally occurring agonist
quisqualate and was only later given the label "AMPA receptor" after the selective agonist developed by Tage Honore and colleagues at the Royal Danish School of Pharmacy in Copenhagen. AMPARs are found in many parts of the
brain and are the most commonly found receptor in the
nervous system. The AMPA receptor GluA2 (GluR2) tetramer was the first glutamate receptor ion channel to be
crystallized.