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One hundred years from Otto Loewi experiment, a dream that revolutionized our view of neurotransmission

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Abstract

One hundred years ago, a 4-page paper published in the Pflüger’s Archiv fűr die Gesamte Physiologie des Menschen und der Tiere dramatically changed our view on synaptic transmission. The paper reported an ingenious, yet straightforward experiment made by Professor Otto Loewi in 1920 and published in 1921, which constitutes the first clear-cut proof for the chemical nature of transmission of the nerve impulse from nerve to muscle. The approach to this experiment was, however, tortuous and long.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Pharmacology Unit, Medical School, Universidad de La Laguna, 38200, La Laguna, Tenerife, Spain

    Ricardo Borges

  2. Departamento de Farmacología y Terapéutica, Instituto Fundación Teófilo Hernando, Universidad Autónoma de Madrid, Madrid, Spain

    Antonio G. García

  3. Facultad de Medicina, Instituto de Investigación Sanitaria de La Princesa, Universidad Autónoma de Madrid, Madrid, Spain

    Antonio G. García

Authors
  1. Ricardo Borges
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  2. Antonio G. García
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Correspondence to Ricardo Borges.

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Borges, R., García, A.G. One hundred years from Otto Loewi experiment, a dream that revolutionized our view of neurotransmission. Pflugers Arch - Eur J Physiol 473, 977–981 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00424-021-02580-9

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00424-021-02580-9

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