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The regulation and role of neuronal gap junctions during development
1Department of Molecular and Integrative Physiology; University of Kansas Medical Center; Kansas City, KS USA.
Communicative & Integrative Biology
|November 3, 2011
Summary
Neuronal electrical synapses (gap junctions) increase during development, influenced by glutamate and GABA receptors. This process regulates neuronal development and survival.
Area of Science:
- Neuroscience
- Developmental Biology
- Cellular Signaling
Background:
- Electrical synapses, or gap junctions, transiently increase during mammalian CNS development.
- This developmental increase is crucial for events like neuronal death and subsequently decreases in adults.
- The precise molecular mechanisms regulating this developmental plasticity remain incompletely understood.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the regulatory mechanisms controlling the developmental increase in neuronal gap junction coupling.
- To elucidate the roles of group II metabotropic glutamate receptors (mGluR) and GABA(A) receptors in this process.
- To determine how these neurotransmitter receptors influence the expression of connexin 36 (Cx36), the primary neuronal gap junction protein.
Main Methods:
- Utilized molecular and genetic techniques to study Cx36 gene regulation.
- Investigated the impact of activating group II mGluRs and GABA(A) receptors on neuronal coupling.
- Analyzed the role of a neuron-restrictive silencer element in the Cx36 gene promoter and 3'-untranslated region of Cx36 mRNA.
Main Results:
- Group II mGluR activation promotes developmental increases in neuronal gap junction coupling and Cx36 expression.
- GABA(A) receptor activation counteracts these increases, suggesting a balancing act between the two receptor types.
- Regulation occurs via a neuron-restrictive silencer element in the Cx36 gene promoter and Cx36 mRNA's 3'-untranslated region.
- These developmental gap junction mechanisms directly influence neuronal death and survival pathways.
Conclusions:
- The balance between group II mGluR and GABA(A) receptor activity is critical for regulating developmental neuronal coupling.
- Cx36 expression and neuronal gap junction formation are key targets of this neurotransmitter receptor-mediated regulation.
- This regulatory pathway plays a significant role in controlling neuronal survival during development.
Keywords:
GABA receptorsconnexin 36developmentelectrical synapsesgap junctionsmetabotropic glutamate receptorsneuronal deathMore Related Videos
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