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Updated: Jun 3, 2026

Utilizing Combined Methodologies to Define the Role of Plasma Membrane Delivery During Axon Branching and Neuronal Morphogenesis
Published on: March 16, 2016
Syntaxin requirement for Ca2+-triggered exocytosis in neurons and endocrine cells demonstrated with an engineered
Dongsheng Wang1, Zhen Zhang, Min Dong
1Department of Neuroscience, University of Wisconsin, Madison, Wisconsin 53706-1510, United States.
Abstract:
Botulinum neurotoxins cleave synaptic SNAREs and block exocytosis, demonstrating that these proteins function in neurosecretion. However, the function of the SNARE syntaxin remains less clear because no neurotoxin cleaves it selectively. Starting with a botulinum neurotoxin that cleaves both syntaxin and SNAP-25, we engineered a version that retains activity against syntaxin but spares SNAP-25. These mutants block synaptic release in neurons and norepinephrine release in neuroendocrine cells, thus establishing an essential role for syntaxin in Ca2+-triggered exocytosis. These mutants can generate syntaxin-free cells as a useful experimental system for research and may lead to pharmaceuticals that target syntaxin selectively.
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