Referenced in: none

Automatically associated channels: Slo1

Title: Wnt signaling regulates acetylcholine receptor translocation and synaptic plasticity in the adult nervous system.

Authors: Michael Jensen, Frédéric J Hoerndli, Penelope J Brockie, Rui Wang, Erica Johnson, Dane Maxfield, Michael M Francis, David M Madsen, Andres V Maricq

Journal, date & volume: Cell, 2012 Mar 30 , 149, 173-87

PubMed link: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/22464329

Abstract
The adult nervous system is plastic, allowing us to learn, remember, and forget. Experience-dependent plasticity occurs at synapses--the specialized points of contact between neurons where signaling occurs. However, the mechanisms that regulate the strength of synaptic signaling are not well understood. Here, we define a Wnt-signaling pathway that modifies synaptic strength in the adult nervous system by regulating the translocation of one class of acetylcholine receptors (AChRs) to synapses. In Caenorhabditis elegans, we show that mutations in CWN-2 (Wnt ligand), LIN-17 (Frizzled), CAM-1 (Ror receptor tyrosine kinase), or the downstream effector DSH-1 (disheveled) result in similar subsynaptic accumulations of ACR-16/α7 AChRs, a consequent reduction in synaptic current, and predictable behavioral defects. Photoconversion experiments revealed defective translocation of ACR-16/α7 to synapses in Wnt-signaling mutants. Using optogenetic nerve stimulation, we demonstrate activity-dependent synaptic plasticity and its dependence on ACR-16/α7 translocation mediated by Wnt signaling via LIN-17/CAM-1 heteromeric receptors.