Leibniz Institute for Neurobiology, Brenneckestr. 6, 39118 Magdeburg, Germany.
Adv Exp Med Biol. 2012;970:3-28. doi: 10.1007/978-3-7091-0932-8_1.
The molecular and cellular mechanisms that control the composition and functionality of ionotropic glutamate receptors may be considered as most important "set screws" for adjusting excitatory transmission in the course of developmental and experience-dependent changes within neural networks. The Drosophila larval neuromuscular junction has emerged as one important invertebrate model system to study the formation, maintenance, and plasticity-related remodeling of glutamatergic synapses in vivo. By exploiting the unique genetic accessibility of this organism combined with diverse tools for manipulation and analysis including electrophysiology and state of the art imaging, considerable progress has been made to characterize the role of glutamate receptors during the orchestration of junctional development, synaptic activity, and synaptogenesis. Following an introduction to basic features of this model system, we will mainly focus on conceptually important findings such as the selective impact of glutamate receptor subtypes on the formation of new synapses, the coordination of presynaptic maturation and receptor subtype composition, the role of nonvesicularly released glutamate on the synaptic localization of receptors, or the homeostatic feedback of receptor functionality on presynaptic transmitter release.
控制离子型谷氨酸受体组成和功能的分子和细胞机制，可以被视为调节神经网络发育和经验依赖性变化过程中兴奋性传递的最重要的“微调螺丝”。果蝇幼虫的神经肌肉接头已经成为研究体内谷氨酸能突触形成、维持和与可塑性相关的重塑的重要无脊椎动物模型系统。通过利用该生物体独特的遗传可及性，以及包括电生理学和最先进的成像技术在内的多样化操作和分析工具，在描述谷氨酸受体在连接发育、突触活动和突触发生中的协调作用方面取得了相当大的进展。在介绍这个模型系统的基本特征之后，我们将主要关注一些概念上重要的发现，例如谷氨酸受体亚型对新突触形成的选择性影响、突触前成熟和受体亚型组成的协调、非囊泡释放的谷氨酸在受体突触定位上的作用，或受体功能的同源反馈对突触前递质释放的影响。
