Nencki Institute of Experimental Biology Polish Academy of Sciences, 3 Pasteur Street, 02-093, Warsaw, Poland.
Nencki Institute of Experimental Biology Polish Academy of Sciences, 3 Pasteur Street, 02-093, Warsaw, Poland; Łukasiewicz Research Network - PORT Polish Center for Technology Development, 147 Stabłowicka Street, 54-066 Wrocław, Poland.
Semin Cell Dev Biol. 2020 Aug;104:31-38. doi: 10.1016/j.semcdb.2020.02.011. Epub 2020 Mar 5.
Neuromuscular junctions (NMJs) are specialized synapses in the peripheral nervous system that allow the transmission of neuronal impulses to skeletal muscles for their contraction. Due to its size and accessibility, the NMJ is a commonly used model for studying basic principles of synapse organization and function. Similar to synapses in the central nervous system, NMJs are composed of presynaptic axonal terminals, the postsynaptic machinery formed at the membrane of the muscle fibers, and the synapse-associated glial cells. The special glial cells at the NMJs are called terminal Schwann cells or perisynaptic Schwann cells (PSCs). Decades of studies on the NMJ, as well as the most recent discoveries, have revealed multiple functions for PSCs at different stages of synaptic formation, maintenance, and disassembly. This review summarizes major observations in the field.
神经肌肉接头（NMJ）是周围神经系统中的特殊突触，允许神经元冲动传递到骨骼肌以进行收缩。由于其大小和可及性，NMJ 是研究突触组织和功能基本原理的常用模型。与中枢神经系统中的突触类似，NMJ 由突触前轴突末梢、形成在肌肉纤维膜上的突触后机制以及突触相关的神经胶质细胞组成。NMJ 处的特殊神经胶质细胞称为终末施万细胞或突触周施万细胞（PSCs）。数十年来对 NMJ 的研究以及最近的发现揭示了 PSCs 在突触形成、维持和分解的不同阶段的多种功能。本综述总结了该领域的主要观察结果。
