Search research articles

ABOUT JoVE

Overview Leadership Blog JoVE Help Center

AUTHORS

Publishing Process Editorial Board Scope & Policies Peer Review FAQ Submit

LIBRARIANS

Testimonials Subscriptions Access Resources Library Advisory Board FAQ

RESEARCH

JoVE Journal Methods Collections JoVE Encyclopedia of Experiments Archive

EDUCATION

JoVE Core JoVE Business JoVE Science Education JoVE Lab Manual Faculty Resource Center Faculty Site

Terms & Conditions of Use

Related Concept Videos

Neuroplasticity

Neuroplasticity

Neuroplasticity reflects the brain's remarkable capacity to adapt and evolve, responding dynamically to learning, experiences, or injury by reorganizing its neural circuitry. This reorganization involves creating new neural connections and refining old ones through a series of biological processes that contribute to the brain's lifelong development and adaptability.

Chemical Synapses

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 Synapses

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...

Long-term Potentiation

Long-term Potentiation

Long-term potentiation, or LTP, is one of the ways by which synaptic plasticity—changes in the strength of chemical synapses—can occur in the brain. LTP is the process of synaptic strengthening that occurs over time between pre and postsynaptic neuronal connections. The synaptic strengthening of LTP works in opposition to the synaptic weakening of long-term depression (LTD) and together are the main mechanisms that underlie learning and memory.
Hebbian LTP
LTP can occur when presynaptic neurons...

Long-term Potentiation

Long-term Potentiation

Long-term potentiation, or LTP, is one of the ways by which synaptic plasticity—changes in the strength of chemical synapses—can occur in the brain. LTP is the process of synaptic strengthening that occurs over time between pre- and postsynaptic neuronal connections. The synaptic strengthening of LTP works in opposition to the synaptic weakening of long-term depression (LTD) and together are the main mechanisms that underlie learning and memory.

Integration of Synaptic Events

Integration of Synaptic Events

Synaptic integration mainly includes the summation of graded potentials. Graded potentials, regardless of their type, cause subtle alterations in membrane voltage, resulting in either depolarization or hyperpolarization. These incremental changes, when combined or summed, can propel the neuron toward its threshold. Consider, for example, a membrane experiencing a +15 mV shift, causing it to depolarize from -70 mV to -55 mV. In this scenario, graded potentials govern the membrane's ability to...

You might also read

Related Articles

Articles linked to this work by shared authors, journal, and citation graph.

Sort by

Same author

Neuromuscular junction failure in sarcopenia is linked to NaV1.4 loss and reversed by ClC-1 inhibition.

The Journal of clinical investigation·2026

Same author

Reduced cortico-muscular output is associated with intrinsic hypoexcitability and reduced persistent inward currents in motor cortex neurons of TDP-43<sup>Q331K</sup> ALS mice.

Neurobiology of disease·2025

Same author

Activation of aortic baroreceptors depresses the somato-lumbar sympathetic reflex, reducing hindlimb muscle contractile force.

The journal of physiological sciences : JPS·2025

Same author

The Neuromuscular Junction: A Shared Vulnerability in Aging and Disease.

The Journal of neuroscience : the official journal of the Society for Neuroscience·2025

Same author

Development of a Hybrid-Type Fluorescent GABA Sensor through Structure-Guided Efficient Screening.

ACS sensors·2025

Same author

Muscle-specific Bet1L knockdown induces neuromuscular denervation, motor neuron degeneration, and motor dysfunction in a rat model of familial ALS.

Frontiers in neuroscience·2025

Search research articles

Related Experiment Video

Updated: May 23, 2026

Evaluation of Synapse Density in Hippocampal Rodent Brain Slices

Evaluation of Synapse Density in Hippocampal Rodent Brain Slices

Published on: October 6, 2017

Presynaptic Active Zone Density during Development and Synaptic Plasticity.

Gwenaëlle L Clarke¹, Jie Chen, Hiroshi Nishimune

¹Department of Anatomy and Cell Biology, University of Kansas Medical School Kansas City, KS, USA.

Frontiers in Molecular Neuroscience

|March 23, 2012

Summary

This summary is machine-generated.

Active zone density regulates synaptic transmission efficiency. This review explores molecular mechanisms controlling active zone number at neuromuscular junctions and in the central nervous system, highlighting key proteins involved.

Keywords:

Rab3 Rim1 Unc-51 bassoon calcium channel laminin spectrin synaptojanin

More Related Videos

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

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

Published on: September 3, 2014

Preparation of Synaptoneurosomes from Mouse Cortex using a Discontinuous Percoll-Sucrose Density Gradient

Preparation of Synaptoneurosomes from Mouse Cortex using a Discontinuous Percoll-Sucrose Density Gradient

Published on: September 17, 2011

Related Experiment Videos

Last Updated: May 23, 2026

Evaluation of Synapse Density in Hippocampal Rodent Brain Slices

Evaluation of Synapse Density in Hippocampal Rodent Brain Slices

Published on: October 6, 2017

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

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

Published on: September 3, 2014

Preparation of Synaptoneurosomes from Mouse Cortex using a Discontinuous Percoll-Sucrose Density Gradient

Preparation of Synaptoneurosomes from Mouse Cortex using a Discontinuous Percoll-Sucrose Density Gradient

Published on: September 17, 2011

Area of Science:

Neuroscience
Cell Biology
Molecular Biology

Background:

Synaptic transmission efficiency is linked to presynaptic active zone density.
Active zone density is crucial for regulating information flow in neural circuits.

Purpose of the Study:

To review recent findings on molecular mechanisms controlling active zone density.
To understand how active zone density changes during development and in response to stimuli.

Main Methods:

This review synthesizes existing research on active zone density.
It discusses molecular players identified through genetic and biochemical studies.

Main Results:

Active zone density is conserved at neuromuscular junctions but can change with aging or experimental manipulation.
In the central nervous system, active zone density is generally constant during development but can increase with synaptic plasticity.
Key molecules controlling active zone density include laminins, calcium channels, amyloid precursor proteins, Rab3, and cytoskeletal proteins like spectrins.

Conclusions:

Mechanisms maintaining active zone density are essential for stable synaptic function.
While many proteins are implicated, the precise molecular control of active zone number and spacing is still under investigation.