Related Experiment Video
Updated: Feb 11, 2026
09:50
Mapping Inhibitory Neuronal Circuits by Laser Scanning Photostimulation
Published on: October 6, 2011
17.8K
Molecular diversity underlying cortical excitatory and inhibitory synapse development.
Emilia Favuzzi1, Beatriz Rico1
1Centre for Developmental Neurobiology, Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology and Neuroscience, King's College London, London SE1 1UL, United Kingdom; MRC Centre for Neurodevelopmental Disorders, King's College London, London SE1 1UL, United Kingdom.
Current Opinion in Neurobiology
|April 29, 2018
Summary
Synapse development relies on diverse molecules regulating excitatory and inhibitory connections. Understanding these molecules is key to deciphering complex brain circuitry and its development.
Area of Science:
- Neuroscience
- Molecular Biology
- Developmental Biology
Background:
- Cortical circuitry complexity arises from diverse synapse types generated during development.
- Synapse development is a highly regulated process involving specific molecular mechanisms.
Purpose of the Study:
- To review recent advances in understanding how synapse type-specific molecules regulate excitatory and inhibitory synapse development.
- To highlight the role of molecular diversity in the development of different synapse subtypes.
Main Methods:
- Review of current scientific literature on synapse development.
- Analysis of studies investigating synapse type-specific molecules and their functions.
Main Results:
- Synapse type-specific molecules differentially regulate the development of excitatory and inhibitory synapses.
- Specific molecules control the targeting, formation, and maturation of excitatory synapse subtypes.
- The extreme diversity of inhibitory neurons suggests a parallel molecular diversity in inhibitory synapse development.
Conclusions:
- Molecular diversity is crucial for generating the variety of synapse types observed in the brain.
- Further research into the molecular mechanisms governing inhibitory synapse development is warranted.
- Understanding these processes is fundamental for comprehending brain circuitry development and function.
Related Concept Videos
01:29Excitatory and Inhibitory Effects of Neurotransmitters
13.1K
When an action potential reaches the presynaptic axon terminal, it releases neurotransmitters from the neuron into the synaptic cleft at a chemical synapse. The released neurotransmitter can be excitatory or inhibitory. The critical criteria commonly used to determine whether a molecule is a neurotransmitter at a chemical synapse are the molecule's presence in the presynaptic neuron. Second, its release is in response to strong presynaptic depolarization. And lastly, the presence of...
13.1K
02:47The Synapse
133.7K
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.
133.7K
01:28Electrical Synapses
10.9K
Electrical synapses found in all nervous systems play important and unique roles. In these synapses, the presynaptic and postsynaptic membranes are very close together (3.5 nm) and are actually physically connected by channel proteins forming gap junctions.
Gap junctions allow the current to pass directly from one cell to the next. In contrast, in the chemical synapse, the neurotransmitters carry the information through the synaptic cleft from one neuron to the next. They consist of two...
Gap junctions allow the current to pass directly from one cell to the next. In contrast, in the chemical synapse, the neurotransmitters carry the information through the synaptic cleft from one neuron to the next. They consist of two...
10.9K
01:26Chemical Synapses
11.9K
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...
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...
11.9K
01:13Cell Diversity
5.2K
The concept of a cell started with microscopic observations of dead cork tissue by Robert Hooke in 1665. Hooke coined the term "cell" based on the resemblance of the small subdivisions in the cork to the rooms that monks inhabited, called cells. About ten years later, Antonie van Leeuwenhoek became the first person to observe the living and moving cells under a microscope. In the century that followed, the theory that cells represented the basic unit of life developed.
Multicellular...
Multicellular...
5.2K
01:24Diversity of Archaea II
544
Archaea, one of the three domains of life, exhibit remarkable diversity and adaptability, thriving in both extreme and moderate environments. Historically, most identified archaea have been classified into two major phyla: Euryarchaeota and Crenarchaeota. However, recent molecular studies have expanded this classification to include three additional phyla: Thaumarchaeota, Nanoarchaeota, and Korarchaeota, each exhibiting unique characteristics and ecological roles.Thaumarchaeota: Mesophiles...
544