Tiny bubbles lipton8/28/2023 After an axon has reached its target destination, it will connect with other neurons in the target area by forming two types of synapses. The paper shows that Arl-8 is the clasp that keeps a lid on the loaded-spring like capacity of these pre-synapse cargos that are in transit, preventing them from jumping off the transport train and assembling functional synapses.Įach neuron in the brain connects to only a small subset of the other neurons in the brain, and the selection of the appropriate target neurons is crucial to forming a well functioning brain. The paper provides key evidence that instead of pre-synaptic proteins being transported in separate pieces, and assembled from scratch onsite as a functioning synapse, all the major protein components of the pre-synapse are transported together, ready for quick and easy assembly upon arrival. A 2010 paper from Kang Shen’s lab shows that these two processes appear to be intricately linked. So both transporting synaptic proteins down the axon and forming synapses at the correct locations are two formidable challenges for the developing neuron. These synapses along and at the ends of axons can be extremely far away from the cell body, where most of the proteins are created. Neurons communicate with each other by sending electrical signals down axons, and across synapses to target other neurons. Here, I’ll be reviewing the first in this series, by Klassen and colleagues, from 2010. A series of papers from Kang Shen's lab, which I have recently joined, sheds light on a key and fundamental step in the process of transporting pre-synapse forming proteins down the axon and forming functional synapses at exactly the right locations.
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