A dual role for Cav1.4 Ca2+ channels in the molecular and structural organization of the rod photoreceptor synapse

eLife

Kate L Randall¹  Jussara Hagen¹  Sheila A Baker¹  Amy Lee¹  Ravi P Yadav²  Nikolai Artemyev²  Paul J Derr²  J Wesley Maddox³  Brittany Williams³  Luca Della Santina³  Mrinalini Hoon³  Vasily Kerov³ 

[1] Iowa Neuroscience Institute, University of Iowa, Iowa City, United States;Pappajohn Biomedical Institute, University of Iowa, Iowa City, United States;Department of Molecular Physiology and Biophysics, University of Iowa, Iowa City, United States;

关键词: photoreceptor;    retina;    calcium;    synapse;   

DOI  :  10.7554/eLife.62184

来源: DOAJ

【 摘 要 】

Synapses are fundamental information processing units that rely on voltage-gated Ca2+ (Cav) channels to trigger Ca2+-dependent neurotransmitter release. Cav channels also play Ca2+-independent roles in other biological contexts, but whether they do so in axon terminals is unknown. Here, we addressed this unknown with respect to the requirement for Cav1.4 L-type channels for the formation of rod photoreceptor synapses in the retina. Using a mouse strain expressing a non-conducting mutant form of Cav1.4, we report that the Cav1.4 protein, but not its Ca2+ conductance, is required for the molecular assembly of rod synapses; however, Cav1.4 Ca2+ signals are needed for the appropriate recruitment of postsynaptic partners. Our results support a model in which presynaptic Cav channels serve both as organizers of synaptic building blocks and as sources of Ca2+ ions in building the first synapse of the visual pathway and perhaps more broadly in the nervous system.

【 授权许可】

Unknown