Details

Autor(en) / Beteiligte

• Rudenko, G

Titel

Neurexins — versatile molecular platforms in the synaptic cleft

Ist Teil von

• Current opinion in structural biology, 2019-02, Vol.54, p.112-121

Ort / Verlag

England: Elsevier Ltd

Erscheinungsjahr

2019

Quelle

MEDLINE

Beschreibungen/Notizen

• •Neurexins are central synaptic organizers implicated in neuropsychiatric diseases.•Together with their partners, neurexins form transsynaptic bridges that span the synaptic cleft.•A striking constellation of structural features enables neurexins to form molecular platforms within the synaptic cleft.•Through synergy of these features, neurexins recruit a large portfolio of different partners.•Increasing evidence suggests that these interactions can be dynamic regulated, sculpting protein networks in the cleft. Neurexins constitute a large family of synaptic organizers. Their extracellular domains protrude into the synaptic cleft where they can form transsynaptic bridges with different partners. A unique constellation of structural elements within their ectodomains enables neurexins to create molecular platforms within the synaptic cleft that permit a large portfolio of partners to be recruited, assembled and their interactions to be dynamically regulated. Neurexins and their partners are implicated in neuropsychiatric diseases including autism spectrum disorder and schizophrenia. Detailed understanding of the mechanisms that underlie neurexin interactions may in future guide the design of tools to manipulate synaptic connections and their function, in particular those involved in the pathogenesis of neuropsychiatric disease.