AI Article Synopsis
- CAST and ELKS are proteins that help organize active zones at nerve terminals, playing a role in neurotransmitter release.
- A study found that depleting these proteins in the retina leads to morphological changes and functional impairments.
- Although CAST and ELKS are important for maintaining photoreceptors' health, they are not the main regulators of ribbon synapse distribution in these cells.
Article Abstract
The cytomatrix at the active zone-associated structural protein (CAST) and its homologue, named ELKS, being rich in glutamate (E), leucine (L), lysine (K), and serine (S), belong to a family of proteins that organize presynaptic active zones at nerve terminals. These proteins interact with other active zone proteins, including RIMs, Munc13s, Bassoon, and the β subunit of Ca channels, and have various roles in neurotransmitter release. A previous study showed that depletion of CAST/ELKS in the retina causes morphological changes and functional impairment of this structure. In this study, we investigated the roles of CAST and ELKS in ectopic synapse localization. We found that the involvement of these proteins in ribbon synapse distribution is complex. Unexpectedly, CAST and ELKS, in photoreceptors or in horizontal cells, did not play a major role in ribbon synapse ectopic localization. However, depletion of CAST and ELKS in the mature retina resulted in degeneration of the photoreceptors. These findings suggest that CAST and ELKS play critical roles in maintaining neural signal transduction in the retina, but the regulation of photoreceptor triad synapse distribution is not solely dependent on their actions within photoreceptors and horizontal cells.
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| http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC10138387 | PMC |
| http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/ijms24087251 | DOI Listing |
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