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Related Concept Videos

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

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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.
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Synaptic Signaling01:09

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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.
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Postsynaptic potential (PSP) refers to a change in the electrical potential of a neuron when neurotransmitters released by presynaptic neurons bind to postsynaptic receptors. This potential can either be excitatory, leading to depolarization and ultimately action potential generation, or inhibitory, leading to hyperpolarization and suppression of the postsynaptic neuron.
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Postsynaptic receptors regulate presynaptic transmitter stability through transsynaptic bridges.

Swetha K Godavarthi1,2, Masaki Hiramoto3, Yuri Ignatyev4

  • 1Neurobiology Department, University of California San Diego, La Jolla, CA 92093.

Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America
|April 3, 2024
PubMed
Summary
This summary is machine-generated.

Postsynaptic receptors stabilize presynaptic neurotransmitter identity. Blocking acetylcholine receptors destabilized motor neuron phenotypes, while adding GABAA receptors stabilized them, revealing bidirectional synaptic communication crucial for neural circuit fidelity.

Keywords:
neurotransmitterstransmitter receptorstransmitter selectiontransmitter stabilitytranssynaptic bridges

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Area of Science:

  • Neuroscience
  • Synaptic Plasticity
  • Molecular Neurobiology

Background:

  • Stable neurotransmitter-receptor matching is vital for neural circuit function.
  • Presynaptic neurotransmitters are known to stabilize postsynaptic receptors.
  • The reciprocal regulation by postsynaptic receptors on presynaptic transmitter identity is less understood.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate whether postsynaptic receptors influence the stabilization of presynaptic transmitter phenotypes.
  • To explore the role of transsynaptic communication in maintaining synaptic specificity.

Main Methods:

  • Utilized the neuromuscular junction model system.
  • Manipulated endogenous and exogenous postsynaptic receptors (acetylcholine receptors [AChR] and gamma-aminobutyric acid type A [GABAA] receptors).
  • Employed knockdown of transsynaptic bridge components.

Main Results:

  • Blockade of postsynaptic AChR destabilized cholinergic motor neuron phenotype and stabilized a transient glutamatergic phenotype.
  • Expression of exogenous postsynaptic GABAA receptors stabilized a transient GABAergic motor neuron phenotype.
  • Transsynaptic bridges link postsynaptic receptors to presynaptic neurons, and their disruption prevents phenotype stabilization.

Conclusions:

  • Bidirectional communication between pre- and postsynaptic elements ensures transmitter-receptor matching and synaptic fidelity.
  • Dysfunctional transmitter receptors may contribute to neurological disorders characterized by presynaptic transmitter loss.