Neurotransmitters play an important role in nervous system. Temporal and spatial changes of neurotransmitter distribution are crucial to information processing in neural networks. Biosensors that can visually monitor neurotransmitters are one of the vital tools to explore a variety of physiological and pathological activities. This article reviews recent advances in monitoring neurotransmitters with high temporal and spatial resolution, and introduces the latest fluorescent imaging methods for typical neurotransmitters, including glutamate, dopamine, γ-aminobutyric acid and acetylcholine. The article also summarizes the basic principles, advantages and disadvantages of various visually detection methods, and provides systematic suggestions for designing neurotransmitter sensors with high temporal and spatial resolution.
神经递质是神经系统中至关重要的组成部分，神经递质释放的时间和空间变化是神经网络中信息处理的核心，可视化监测神经递质的生物传感器是探究各类生理和病理活动的重要工具。文中综述了近年来具有较高时间和空间分辨率的监测神经递质时空分布变化技术的研究进展，介绍了对谷氨酸、多巴胺、γ-氨基丁酸和乙酰胆碱这4 类重要的神经递质的检测方法，并归纳总结了各类检测方法的基本原理和优缺点，为设计具有高时空分辨率的神经递质传感器提供一个较为系统的参考。.
Keywords: fluorescence resonance energy transfer; fluorescent protein; neurotransmitter; visualization.