Journal
JOURNAL OF NEUROSCIENCE
Volume 25, Issue 43, Pages 9949-9959Publisher
SOC NEUROSCIENCE
DOI: 10.1523/JNEUROSCI.3169-05.2005
Keywords
toxin; turnover; synaptic transmission; neuromuscular junction; trafficking; acetylcholine receptor (AChR)
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Funding
- NIMH NIH HHS [MH14279, T32 MH014279] Funding Source: Medline
- NINDS NIH HHS [NS047332, R01 NS047332] Funding Source: Medline
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In the CNS, receptor recycling is critical for synaptic plasticity; however, the recycling of receptors has never been observed at peripheral synapses. Using a novel imaging technique, we show here that nicotinic acetylcholine receptors (AChRs) recycle into the postsynaptic membrane of the neuromuscular junction. By sequentially labeling AChRs with biotin-bungarotoxin and streptavidin-fluorophore conjugates, we were able to distinguish recycled, preexisting, and new receptor pools at synapses in living mice. Time-lapse imaging revealed that recycled AChRs were incorporated into the synapse within hours of initial labeling, and their numbers increased with time. At fully functional synapses, AChR recycling was robust and comparable in magnitude with the insertion of newly synthesized receptors, whereas chronic synaptic activity blockade nearly abolished receptor recycling. Finally, using the same sequential labeling method, we found that acetylcholinesterase, another synaptic component, does not recycle. These results identify an activity-dependent AChR-recycling mechanism that enables the regulation of receptor density, which could lead to rapid alterations in synaptic efficacy.
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