Dittrich Markus, Homan Anne E, Meriney Stephen D
BioTeam Inc., 7 Derosier Drive, Middleton, MA 01949.
Department of Neuroscience, A210 Langley Hall, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA 15260.
Curr Opin Physiol. 2018 Aug;4:15-24. doi: 10.1016/j.cophys.2018.03.004. Epub 2018 Mar 17.
Calcium-triggered neurotransmission underlies most communication in the nervous system. Yet, despite the conserved and essential nature of this process, the molecular underpinnings of calcium-triggered neurotransmission have been difficult to study directly and our understanding to this date remains incomplete. Here we frame more recent efforts to understand this process with a historical perspective of the study of neurotransmitter release at the neuromuscular junction. We focus on the role of calcium channel distribution and organization relative to synaptic vesicles, as well as the nature of the calcium sensors that trigger release. Importantly, we provide a framework for understanding how the function of neurotransmitter release sites, or active zones, contributes to the function of the synapse as a whole.
钙触发的神经传递是神经系统中大多数信号传递的基础。然而，尽管这一过程具有保守性和本质重要性，但钙触发神经传递的分子基础一直难以直接研究，迄今为止我们对此的理解仍不完整。在这里，我们从神经肌肉接头处神经递质释放研究的历史角度，阐述了最近为理解这一过程所做的努力。我们重点关注钙通道相对于突触小泡的分布和组织作用，以及触发释放的钙传感器的性质。重要的是，我们提供了一个框架，用于理解神经递质释放位点（即活性区）的功能如何对整个突触的功能产生影响。
