Stability of dendritic spines and synaptic contacts is controlled by alpha N-catenin.
Stability of dendritic spines and synaptic contacts is controlled by alpha N-catenin.
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发表时间:
2004
影响因子:
25
通讯作者:
K. Abe;O. Chisaka;F. van Roy;M. Takeichi
中科院分区:
文献类型:
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作者:
K. Abe;O. Chisaka;F. van Roy;M. Takeichi
Morphological plasticity of dendritic spines and synapses is thought to be crucial for their physiological functions. Here we show that alpha N-catenin, a linker between cadherin adhesion receptors and the actin cytoskeleton, is essential for stabilizing dendritic spines in rodent hippocampal neurons in culture. In the absence of alpha N-catenin, spine heads were abnormally motile, actively protruding filopodia from their synaptic contact sites. Conversely, alpha N-catenin overexpression in dendrites reduced spine turnover, causing an increase in spine and synapse density. Tetrodotoxin (TTX), a neural activity blocker, suppressed the synaptic accumulation of alpha N-catenin, whereas bicuculline, a GABA antagonist, promoted it. Furthermore, excess alpha N-catenin rendered spines resistant to the TTX treatment. These results suggest that alpha N-catenin is a key regulator for the stability of synaptic contacts.