Some scientific discoveries land with a boom only to fizzle out and become a small blip—but there are times when this order is reversed. Such was the case with the discovery of γ-aminobutyric acid (GABA) in the brain, reported in 1950. In a study published in the Journal of Biological Chemistry (1), preceded by a brief conference report shortly before that (2), Eugene Roberts (Fig. 1) and Sam Frankel not only identified GABA as a major amine in the brain, but also reported that it is produced and preferentially accumulates in this organ.
