Neuronal BC1 RNA: intracellular transport and activity-dependent modulation.

Abstract

RNA transport in dendrites, and subsequent local translation in postsynaptic microdomains, have increasingly been recognized as potentially powerful tools for neurons in long-term modulations of individual synapses (see reviews by Steward 1997; Kuhl and Skehel 1998; Tiedge et al. 1999). While analogous mechanisms have also been reported to be employed by other cell types (reviewed by Bassell et al. 1999), neurons face a particular challenge in that thousands of synapses per dendritic arborization (many of which at considerable distances from the soma) have to be regulated in an independent and input-specific manner. It now appears plausible that such regulation is achieved by two mechanisms: (1) targeted delivery of specific proteins to dendritic sites of demand, and (2) dendritic transport of select RNAs, followed by local postsynaptic translation when and where needed.KeywordsDendritic SegmentMauthner NeuronLocal Protein SynthesisCell BioIMyelin Basic Protein mRNAThese keywords were added by machine and not by the authors. This process is experimental and the keywords may be updated as the learning algorithm improves.