The Sticky Synapse

1. Front Matter

   Pages i-xii

   PDF

2. A Short History of the Synapse – Golgi Versus Ramón y Cajal

   • Michael Hortsch

   Pages 1-9

3. Cell Adhesion Molecules at the Drosophila Neuromuscular Junction

   • Franklin A. Carrero-Martínez, Akira Chiba

   Pages 11-37

4. Development of the Vertebrate Neuromuscular Junction

   • Michael A. Fox

   Pages 39-84

5. Synapse Formation in the Mammalian Central Nervous System

   • Masahiro Yasuda, Hisashi Umemori

   Pages 85-106

6. Developmental Axonal Pruning and Synaptic Plasticity

   • Bibiana Scelfo, Mario Rosario Buffelli

   Pages 107-140

7. Cell Adhesion Molecules in Synaptopathies

   • Thomas Bourgeron

   Pages 141-158

8. The Cadherin Superfamily in Synapse Formation and Function

   • Andrew M. Garrett, Dietmar Schreiner, Joshua A. Weiner

   Pages 159-183

9. Nectins and Nectin-Like Molecules in the Nervous System

   • Hideru Togashi, Hisakazu Ogita, Yoshimi Takai

   Pages 185-206

10. The Down Syndrome Cell Adhesion Molecule

    • Hitesh Kathuria, James C. Clemens

    Pages 207-222

11. Molecular Basis of Lamina-Specific Synaptic Connections in the Retina: Sidekick Immunoglobulin Superfamily Molecules

    • Y. Kate Hong, Masahito Yamagata

    Pages 223-234

12. SYG/Nephrin/IrreC Family of Adhesion Proteins Mediate Asymmetric Cell–Cell Adhesion in Development

    • Kang Shen

    Pages 235-245

13. L1-Type Cell Adhesion Molecules: Distinct Roles in Synaptic Targeting, Organization, and Function

    • Smitha Babu Uthaman, Tanja Angela Godenschwege

    Pages 247-263

14. Cell Adhesion Molecules of the NCAM Family and Their Roles at Synapses

    • Sylwia Owczarek, Lars V. Kristiansen, Michael Hortsch, Peter S. Walmod

    Pages 265-299

15. MHC Class I Function at the Neuronal Synapse

    • Sebastian Thams, Staffan Cullheim

    Pages 301-319

16. Pathfinding Molecules Branch Out: Semaphorin Family Members Regulate Synapse Development

    • Suzanne Paradis

    Pages 321-331

17. Ephrins and Eph Receptor Tyrosine Kinases in Synapse Formation

    • Catherine E. Krull, Daniel J. Liebl

    Pages 333-345

18. Neurexins and Neuroligins: A Synaptic Code for Neuronal Wiring That Is Implicated in Autism

    • Alexander A. Chubykin

    Pages 347-365

19. Synaptic Adhesion-Like Molecules (SALMs)

    • Philip Y. Wang, Robert J. Wenthold

    Pages 367-383

20. The Role of Integrins at Synapses

    • Devi Majumdar, Donna J. Webb

    Pages 385-395

The molecular mechanisms, which are responsible for the functional differences between the various types of neuronal synapses, have become one of the central themes of modern neurobiology. It is becoming increasingly clear that a misregulation of synaptogenesis and synaptic remodeling and dysfunctional neuronal synapses are at the heart of several human diseases, both neurological disorders and psychiatric conditions. As synapses present specialized cellular junctions between neurons and their target cells, it may not come as a surprise that neural cell adhesion molecules (CAMs) are of special importance for the genesis and the maintenance of synaptic connections. Genes encoding adhesive molecules make up a significant portion of the human genome, and neural CAMs even have been postulated to be a major factor in the evolution of the human brain. These are just some of the many reasons why we thought a book on neural CAMs and their role in establishing and maintaining neuronal synapses would be highly appropriate for summarizing our current state of knowledge. Without question, over the near future, additional adhesive proteins will join the ranks of synaptic CAMs and our knowledge, and how these molecules enable neurons and their targets to communicate effectively will grow.

• evolution
• molecular mechanisms
• neurobiology
• neurons
• proteins

Dr. Michael Hortsch holds a Diploma degree in Biochemistry from the Free University Berlin and a Ph.D. in Biology from the University of Heidelberg in Germany. While working at the Weizmann Institute in Israel, the European Molecular Biology Laboratory in Heidelberg, and at the University of California at Berkeley he has published on topics such as the mechanism of growth factor receptor activation, the transport of proteins across membranes, and the physiological roles of neuronal cell adhesion molecules during nervous system development. He has been a faculty member of the Department of Cell and Developmental Biology at the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor since 1991. Dr. Hortsch has served on scientific review panels for the National Institutes of Health, the National Science Foundation, and other agencies.

 

Dr. Hisashi Umemori is a faculty member of the Molecular and Behavioral Neuroscience Institute and of the Department of Biological Chemistry at the University of Michigan Medical School. He worked with Dr. Tadashi Yamamoto at the Institute of Medical Sciences of the University of Tokyo and analyzed intracellular signaling mechanisms that are involved in myelination and in learning and memory. While working with Dr. Joshua R. Sanes at Washington University Medical School and at Harvard University, he identified synaptic organizing molecules that promote synapse formation during nervous system development. Dr. Umemori has received various awards, including a Basil O'Connor Award and a Klingenstein Fellowship Award.

 

 

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