Molecular neuroscience articles within Nature Communications

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• Article | 27 March 2013

  Sulfhydration mediates neuroprotective actions of parkin

  The gasotransmitter hydrogen sulfide signals by sulfide modification of target proteins. Vandiver and colleagues study the sulfhydration of parkin by hydrogen sulfide and find that sulfhydration stimulates its activity, and that this activity is reduced in patients with Parkinson’s disease.

  • M. Scott Vandiver
  • , Bindu D. Paul
  •  & Solomon H. Snyder

• Article
  05 February 2013 | Open Access

  Doublecortin-like kinase enhances dendritic remodelling and negatively regulates synapse maturation

  Coordination between dendritic growth and synaptogenesis is essential for the establishment of functional neuronal connectivity. This study shows that doublecortin-like kinases achieve this by promoting the growth of distal dendrites, while suppressing the maturation of glutamatergic synapses.

  • Euikyung Shin
  • , Yutaro Kashiwagi
  •  & Shigeo Okabe

• Article | 29 January 2013

  Heat shock factor-1 influences pathological lesion distribution of polyglutamine-induced neurodegeneration

  Heat shock factor-1 is a transcriptional regulator of heat shock proteins that is implicated in neurodegeneration. Kondo and colleagues study the effects of deleting heat shock factor-1 in a mouse model of muscular dystrophy and find that this augments the condition via the accumulation of androgen receptors.

  • Naohide Kondo
  • , Masahisa Katsuno
  •  & Gen Sobue

• Article
  09 October 2012 | Open Access

  Structural and molecular insights into the mechanism of action of human angiogenin-ALS variants in neurons

  Mutations in human angiogenin are implicated in the progression of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis. Thiyagarajan and colleagues show that structural differences between angiogenin variants affect neuronal survival, and the ability to induce stress granules in neuronal cell lines.

  • Nethaji Thiyagarajan
  • , Ross Ferguson
  •  & K. Ravi Acharya

• Article
  25 September 2012 | Open Access

  Uncoupling of the endocannabinoid signalling complex in a mouse model of fragile X syndrome

  Fragile X syndrome is a major genetic cause of autism and is caused by loss of the fragile X mental retardation protein. In a mouse model of fragile X syndrome, Junget al. show that an absence of neuronal endocannabinoid signalling is responsible for the neurophysiological and behavioural defects.

  • Kwang-Mook Jung
  • , Marja Sepers
  •  & Olivier J. Manzoni

• Article
  12 June 2012 | Open Access

  SynGAP isoforms exert opposing effects on synaptic strength

  Synaptic GTPase-activating protein, SynGAP, is a postsynaptic signalling protein that can regulate synaptic function. McMahonet al. express different SynGAP isoforms in neurons and find that the effect on synaptic strength depends on alternative promoter usage and alternative splicing of the C-terminus.

  • A.C. McMahon
  • , M.W. Barnett
  •  & P.C. Kind

• Article
  13 March 2012 | Open Access

  Intracellular chloride concentration influences the GABA_A receptor subunit composition

  During development there is a change in the expression of GABA_A receptor subunits. Here, Succol and colleagues show that chloride ions mediate the change in α3-α1 and δ-containing GABA_Areceptors that mediate phasic and tonic inhibition, respectively.

  • Francesca Succol
  • , Hubert Fiumelli
  •  & Andrea Barberis

• Article
  06 March 2012 | Open Access

  LIS1-dependent retrograde translocation of excitatory synapses in developing interneuron dendrites

  Maturation of synaptic junctions is important for proper neuronal connections. Using live cell imaging, Okabeet al. show that interneuron dendrites extend filopodia-like projections and use microtubule-dependent retrograde transport to guide proper synaptic distribution on dendrites.

  • Izumi Kawabata
  • , Yutaro Kashiwagi
  •  & Shigeo Okabe

• Article | 08 November 2011

  Modulation of rod photoreceptor output by HCN1 channels is essential for regular mesopic cone vision

  At light levels where both rods and cones are active, their signals converge into shared downstream retinal circuitry. Using HCN1 deficient mice, this study shows that the signals from cone photoreceptors are overwhelmed when rod output is not regulated, suggesting a mechanism for how these systems interact.

  • Mathias W. Seeliger
  • , Arne Brombas
  •  & Frank Müller

• Article | 11 October 2011

  NMDA receptor activation requires remodelling of intersubunit contacts within ligand-binding heterodimers

  In non-NMDA glutamate receptors, intersubunit contacts within agonist binding domains affect functional desensitization. Now, NMDA receptor activation, but not desensitization, is shown to involve rearrangements at the heterodimer interface, suggesting that the intersubunit contacts of NMDA and non-NMDA receptors may have distinct functional roles.

  • William F. Borschel
  • , Swetha E. Murthy
  •  & Gabriela K. Popescu

• Article
  30 August 2011 | Open Access

  Molecular mechanism for 3:1 subunit stoichiometry of rod cyclic nucleotide-gated ion channels

  The assembly mechanisms of heteromeric ion channels are poorly understood. Using a range of techniques, Shuartet al.determine the mechanism by which rod photoreceptor cyclic nucleotide-gated channels assume a 3:1 stoichiometry of CNGA1 and CNGB1 subunits.

  • Noah G. Shuart
  • , Yoni Haitin
  •  & William N. Zagotta

• Article | 19 July 2011

  Outlines of the pore in open and closed conformations describe the gating mechanism of ASIC1

  The pore gating mechanism of the proton-activated sodium channel ASIC1 is poorly understood. Canessaet al.study the shape of the ion pathway in the ASIC1 channel in its open and closed states, and reveal the opening, closing and desensitization mechanisms of the channel.

  • Tianbo Li
  • , Youshan Yang
  •  & Cecilia M. Canessa

• Article | 17 May 2011

  The neural circuits and sensory channels mediating harsh touch sensation in Caenorhabditis elegans

  The mechanisms by which animals distinguish between harsh and gentle touch are unclear. UsingCaenorhabditis elegansas a model system, the authors identify neural circuits and touch-sensitive ion channels that are required for harsh touch sensation.

  • Wei Li
  • , Lijun Kang
  •  & X.Z. Shawn Xu