Rapid structural alterations of the active zone lead to sustained changes in neurotransmitter release

Jacob Matz, Andrew Gilyan, A. Kolar, Terrence McCarvill, Stefan R. Krueger

Résultat de recherche: Articleexamen par les pairs

122 Citations (Scopus)

Résumé

The likelihood with which an action potential elicits neurotransmitter release, the release probability (pr), is an important component of synaptic strength. Regulatory mechanisms controlling several steps of synaptic vesicle (SV) exocytosis may affect pr, yet their relative importance in determining pr and eliciting temporal changes in neurotransmitter release at individual synapses is largely unknown. We have investigated whether the size of the active zone cytomatrix is a major determinant of pr and whether changes in its size lead to corresponding alterations in neurotransmitter release. We have used a fluorescent sensor of SV exocytosis, synaptophysin-pHluorin, to measure pr at individual synapses with high accuracy and employed a fluorescently labeled cytomatrix protein, Bassoon, to quantify the amount of active zone cytomatrix present at these synapses. We find that, for synapses made by a visually identified presynaptic neuron, pr is indeed strongly correlated with the amount of active zone cytomatrix present at the presynaptic specialization. Intriguingly, active zone cytomatrices are frequently subject to synapse-specific changes in size on a time scale of minutes. These spontaneous alterations in active zone size are associated with corresponding changes in neurotransmitter release. Our results suggest that the size of the active zone cytomatrix has a large influence on the reliability of synaptic transmission. Furthermore, they implicate mechanisms leading to rapid structural alterations at active zones in synapse-specific forms of plasticity.

Langue d'origineEnglish
Pages (de-à)8836-8841
Nombre de pages6
JournalProceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America
Volume107
Numéro de publication19
DOI
Statut de publicationPublished - mai 11 2010

ASJC Scopus Subject Areas

  • General

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