Reuptake
The word reuptake refers to the phenomena where, there occurs the reabsorption of a specific neurotransmitter by a neurotransmitter transporter which is located at the linings of the plasma membrane of an axon terminal, that in, in other words, the pre-synaptic neuron at the cite of a synapse, or by the glial cell after the act of transmitting the nerve impulse has been performed.
Reuptake is an essential physiological event since it gives the area for the recycling of neurotransmitters and also regulates the quantity of neurotransmitter present in the synaptic cleft, therefore controlling the time span for which a signal resulting from neurotransmitter release lasts.
As neurotransmitters are quite large and hydrophilic to get diffused through the membrane, certain specific transport proteins are essential for the process of reabsorption of neurotransmitters. Extensive research, both structural and biochemical, has been performed to gain insight about the mechanism of reuptake.