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Related Concept Videos

Chemical Synapses01:26

Chemical Synapses

Chemical synapses are specialized sites between two neurons or between a neuron and a non-neuronal cell like a muscle, glandular or sensory cell.
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...
Chemical Synapses01:26

Chemical Synapses

Chemical synapses are specialized sites between two neurons or between a neuron and a non-neuronal cell like a muscle, glandular or sensory cell.
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...
The Synapse02:47

The Synapse

Neurons communicate with one another by passing on their electrical signals to other neurons. A synapse is the location where two neurons meet to exchange signals. At the synapse, the neuron that sends the signal is called the presynaptic cell, while the neuron that receives the message is called the postsynaptic cell. Note that most neurons can be both presynaptic and postsynaptic, as they both transmit and receive information.
Synaptic Signaling01:09

Synaptic Signaling

Neurons communicate at synapses, or junctions, to excite or inhibit the activity of other neurons or target cells, such as muscles. Synapses may be chemical or electrical.
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...
Synaptic Signaling01:12

Synaptic Signaling

Neurons communicate at synapses, or junctions, to excite or inhibit the activity of other neurons or target cells, such as muscles. Synapses may be chemical or electrical.
Ligand-Gated Ion Channel Receptor: Gating Mechanism01:30

Ligand-Gated Ion Channel Receptor: Gating Mechanism

Ligand-gated ion channels are transmembrane proteins that play a vital role in intercellular communication and functions of the nervous system. They allow the influx of ions across the membrane once the neurotransmitter binds, allowing the subsequent transmission of electrical excitation across the neurons. Other ligand-gated ion channels, like the γ-aminobutyric acid (GABA) receptor, permit anions like chloride into the cells on the binding of the GABA molecule. Their entry into the cell...

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Related Experiment Video

Updated: Jun 23, 2026

Inhibitory Synapse Formation in a Co-culture Model Incorporating GABAergic Medium Spiny Neurons and HEK293 Cells Stably Expressing GABAA Receptors
07:51

Inhibitory Synapse Formation in a Co-culture Model Incorporating GABAergic Medium Spiny Neurons and HEK293 Cells Stably Expressing GABAA Receptors

Published on: November 14, 2014

Compatibility between itinerant synaptic receptors and stable postsynaptic structure.

Ken Sekimoto1, Antoine Triller

  • 1Laboratoire Matières et Systèmes Complexes, Université Paris Diderot and CNRS-UMR 7057, 10 rue Alice Domont et Léonie Duquet, 75013 Paris, France.

Physical Review. E, Statistical, Nonlinear, and Soft Matter Physics
|April 28, 2009
PubMed
Summary
This summary is machine-generated.

Synaptic stability is maintained by scaffold proteins regulating receptor density. Local exchanges occur faster than assembly, creating stable postsynaptic domains through a quasiequilibrium model.

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Last Updated: Jun 23, 2026

Inhibitory Synapse Formation in a Co-culture Model Incorporating GABAergic Medium Spiny Neurons and HEK293 Cells Stably Expressing GABAA Receptors
07:51

Inhibitory Synapse Formation in a Co-culture Model Incorporating GABAergic Medium Spiny Neurons and HEK293 Cells Stably Expressing GABAA Receptors

Published on: November 14, 2014

Preparation of Synaptic Plasma Membrane and Postsynaptic Density Proteins Using a Discontinuous Sucrose Gradient
08:06

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A High-content Assay for Monitoring AMPA Receptor Trafficking
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Area of Science:

  • Neuroscience
  • Biophysics
  • Computational Biology

Background:

  • Synaptic receptor density is crucial for neuronal communication.
  • Scaffold proteins stabilize receptors at presynaptic release sites.
  • Receptor and scaffold dynamics involve local exchanges and assembly.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To propose a mesoscopic model for regulating local synaptic receptor density.
  • To explain the stabilization of receptor density via quasiequilibrium.
  • To investigate the role of protein dynamics in synaptic stability.

Main Methods:

  • Development of a two-zone (synaptic/extrasynaptic) and multilayer (membrane, submembrane, cytoplasmic) topological model.
  • Inclusion of chemical potential balance for receptor and scaffold proteins across compartments.
  • Analysis of cooperative behavior and phase transitions.

Main Results:

  • The model demonstrates quasiequilibrium regulation of receptor density.
  • Highly cooperative behavior was observed, leading to a phase change.
  • Formation of well-defined postsynaptic domains was predicted.
  • Receptors are transiently trapped but diffuse laterally on the plasma membrane.

Conclusions:

  • The proposed model provides theoretical tools for understanding synaptic stability.
  • Local receptor density regulation is achieved through a dynamic quasiequilibrium.
  • Cooperative effects drive the formation of stable postsynaptic structures.