Journal
MOLECULAR AND CELLULAR NEUROSCIENCE
Volume 43, Issue 3, Pages 261-267Publisher
ACADEMIC PRESS INC ELSEVIER SCIENCE
DOI: 10.1016/j.mcn.2009.11.009
Keywords
Synaptic specificity
Categories
Funding
- NINDS NIH HHS [R01 NS048392-07, R01 NS048392, R37 NS048392] Funding Source: Medline
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Synapses are specialized junctions that mediate information flow between neurons and their targets. A striking feature of the nervous system is the specificity of its synaptic connections: an individual neuron will form synapses only with a small subset of available presynaptic and postsynaptic partners. Synaptic specificity has been classically thought to arise from homophilic or heterophilic interactions between adhesive molecules acting across the synaptic cleft. Over the past decade, many new mechanisms giving rise to synaptic specificity have been identified. Synapses can be specified by secreted molecules that promote or inhibit synaptogenesis, and their source can be a neighboring guidepost cell, not just presynaptic and postsynaptic neurons. Furthermore, lineage, fate, and timing of development can also play critical roles in shaping neural circuits. Future work utilizing large-scale screens will aim to elucidate the full scope of cellular mechanisms and molecular players that can give rise to synaptic specificity. (C) 2009 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
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