Ibotenic acid is primarily used in neuroscience research as a tool to study brain function. It is often employed as a neurotoxin to selectively lesion specific areas of the brain, allowing scientists to observe the effects on behavior, cognition, and neural pathways. This helps in understanding the roles of different brain regions. Additionally, it acts as a potent agonist at glutamate receptors, particularly the NMDA and metabotropic glutamate receptors, making it valuable for studying excitatory neurotransmission and synaptic plasticity. Its ability to induce excitotoxicity also aids in modeling neurodegenerative diseases, such as Alzheimer's or Parkinson's, in laboratory settings.