Subtype-selective GAT3 inhibitors are known since 2015.[2]
The transporter and its effect on GABA concentrations in the amygdala has been implicated as a key player in the disease of alcoholism. In studies conducted on rat populations, reduction of GAT3 caused rats who formerly preferred sugar to prefer alcohol. Further, studies of deceased alcoholics show a decreased concentration of GAT3 in their brains.[3]
^Kandel ER, Schwartz JH, Jessell TM, Siegelbaum SA, Hudspeth AJ (2013).Principles of Neural Science (Fifth ed.). McGraw-Hill Companies. p. 296.ISBN978-0-07-139011-8.
^Damgaard M, Al-Khawaja A, Vogensen SB, Jurik A, Sijm M, Lie ME, Bæk MI, Rosenthal E, Jensen AA, Ecker GF, Frølund B, Wellendorph P, Clausen RP (2015). "Identification of the First Highly Subtype-Selective Inhibitor of Human GABA Transporter GAT3".ACS Chem Neurosci.6 (9):1591–9.doi:10.1021/acschemneuro.5b00150.PMID26154082.
