The kirrel family regulates neural circuits formation and higher brain functions.

为了深入了解kirrel 3在大脑中的作用，我们使用kirrel 3-lacZ敲入小鼠研究了kirrel 3在感觉器官和大脑中的表达模式。kirrel 3在出生后的大脑、视网膜和嗅上皮中有强表达。在成年人的大脑中，kirrel 3在嗅觉边缘、听觉和前庭小脑回路中强烈表达。此外，我们观察到kirrel 3基因敲除小鼠在新的环境中表现出增加的运动活动。这些结果表明，kirrel 3在大脑神经回路的形成和维持中起着重要作用。

To gain insights into the role of kirrel3 in the brain, we investigated the expression pattern of kirrel3 in the sensory organs and brain using kirrel3-lacZ knockin mice. The intense expression of kirrel3 was observed in the brain, retina, and olfactory epithelium during postnatal stages. In the adult brain, kirrel3 was intensely expressed in the olfactory-limbic, auditory, and vestibulo-cerebellar circuits. In addition, we observed that kirrel3-knockout mice displayed increased locomotor activities in a novel environment. These results suggest that kirrel3 plays important roles in the formation and maintenance of neural circuits in the brain.