Mechanisms regulating the structural plasticity of active zone cytomatrices at synapses between cortical neurons

在出生后的发育过程中，哺乳动物皮质中的神经元回路经历了一段精化期，在此期间，感觉经验导致神经元之间形成额外的突触接触，代价是已经建立的突触。虽然突触后结构在皮质神经元之间谷氨酸能突触的产生和转化中的作用已被熟知，但对突触前促进突触形成和维持的机制知之甚少。我们研究计划的长期目标是表征突触前结构改变在发育过程中神经元回路突触重组中的作用，并阐明调控突触前结构可塑性的分子机制。在下一个赠款周期中，我们将讨论SYD-1的哺乳动物同源基因在突触前特化的组装和可塑性中的作用。SYD-1是一种假定的RhoGTP酶激活蛋白(RhoGAP)，在线虫和果蝇中具有特征。具体来说，我们将

During postnatal development, neuronal circuits in the mammalian cortex are subject to a period of refinement during which sensory experience leads to the formation of additional synaptic contacts between neurons at the expense of already established synapses. While the role of postsynaptic structures in the generation and turnover of glutamatergic synapses between cortical neurons is well understood, relatively little is known about presynaptic mechanisms contributing to synapse formation and maintenance. The long-term goal of our research program is to characterize the role of presynaptic structural alterations in the synaptic reorganization of neuronal circuits during development and to elucidate the molecular mechanisms regulating presynaptic structural plasticity. In the next grant cycle, we will address the role of mammalian orthologues of SYD-1, a putative RhoGTPase Activating Protein (RhoGAP) characterized in C. elegans and Drosophila, in the assembly and plasticity of presynaptic specializations. Specifically, we will