The Science of Music

Connection between Music and Chemistry

When music is heard, the brain chemically responds. Neuroscientists Valorie Salimpoor and Robert Zatorre at McGill University's Montreal Neurological Institute in Canada studied this response and found that dopamine is released. This chemical is a reward neurotransmitter. When an individual's favorite song is played, the pleasure centers of the brain show a surge in dopamine. A striking observation during this experiment was the significant release of dopamine with the anticipation of the climax of a song.

 

Dopamine: C8H11NO2

In the brain, dopamine is synthesized from amino acids. One specific pathway of synthesis is:

L-Phenylalanine → L-Tyrosine → L-DOPA → Dopamine

 

Dopamine is then degraded by a series of enzymes, in order:

Monoamine oxidase (MAO), aldehyde dehydrogenase (ALDH), and catechol-O-methyl transferase (COMT).

 

Dopamine is normally broken down by oxidation and is catalyzed by the enzyme monoamine oxidase. However, dopamine is also capable direct reaction with oxygen, or autoxidation, yielding various free radicals. The rate of this autoxidation is increased by the presence of ferrous iron (Fe 2+).