An unconventional role of neurotransmission in synapse formation
1Program of Developmental Neurobiology, Institute of Molecular Medicine and Genetics, Department of Neurology, Medical College of Georgia, Augusta 30912, USA.
Neuron
|June 10, 2005
Abstract:
How do presynaptic inputs regulate synapse formation? In this issue of Neuron, Lin et al. show that the neurotransmitter acetylcholine decreases the stability of AChR clusters. This dispersing activity, which requires the serine/threonine kinase Cdk5, cooperates with positive signals from motoneurons to ensure high concentration of AChRs at the neuromuscular junction.
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Most synapses are chemical, meaning an electrical impulse or action potential spurs the release of chemical messengers called neurotransmitters. The neuron sending the signal is called the presynaptic neuron, and the neuron receiving the signal is the postsynaptic neuron.
The presynaptic neuron fires an action potential that...
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The presynaptic neuron fires an action potential that...
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Because chemical synapses depend on the release of neurotransmitter molecules from synaptic vesicles to pass on their signal, there is an approximately one millisecond delay between when the axon potential reaches the presynaptic terminal and when the neurotransmitter leads to opening of postsynaptic ion channels. Additionally, this signaling is...
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