The low binding affinity of D-serine at the ionotropic glutamate receptor GluD2 can be attributed to the hinge region.

Ionotropic glutamate receptors (iGluRs) are responsible for most of the fast excitatory communication between neurons in our brain. The GluD2 receptor is a puzzling member of the iGluR family: It is involved in synaptic plasticity, plays a role in human diseases, e.g.