What is the Dopamine Transporter?
The dopamine transporter is a type of protein that actively transports the neurotransmitter dopamine within nerve synapses. When dopamine is moved from a synapse into a neuron, it is the dopamine transporter that is mostly responsible for performing this function. By doing this, it effectively terminates the dopamine signal being communicated to the neuron. Because of this, malfunctions of the dopamine transporter are blamed for contributing to several psychological disorders, including clinical depression, alcoholism, and bipolar disorder.
