Why is it important for neurotransmitters to be deactivated?
1 Answer
Neurotransmitters engender specific activity at the postsynaptic membrane.
If these neurotransmitters aren't reuptook, degraded, or diffused away in extracellular solution, they will continue to stimulate the postsynaptic membrane.
The biological consequences of this can be rather severe: consider what happens when humans take amphetamine.
To be sure, each neurotransmitter acts as a switch: to ensure ideal function, switches need no be turned "on" until needed. In more scientific terms, we need to prevent excessive firing of action potentials to ensure a good experience for the body.
This will be less abstract and dry if you relate neurotransmitters to behavior (e.g. dopamine ensures smooth movement, serotonin regulates mood, sleep, and other things, etc.).
