Workshops Flashcards
What are the four steps in the exocytosis of NTs?
Trafficking.
Docking.
Fusion.
Exocytosis.
Which molecule helps traffic vesicles to the active zone?
Actin.
Which complex is involved in docking vesicles to the membrane?
Complex of SNARE proteins.
Fusion between the vesicle and the membrane requires an increase of which ion in the cytosol?
Calcium.
What is synaptotagmin?
A calcium sensor.
Which molecule binds to synaptotagmin?
Calcium.
What is the action of synaptotagmin?
Stimulates the v- and t-SNAREs to combine into an alpha-helical-shaped complex.
What is the action of the SNARE complex?
Forces the two membranes together (fusion) and then pulls them apart to spill the vesicle contents into the synaptic cleft (exocytosis).
Which three main structures are involved in declarative memory?
Sensory neocortex.
Parahippocampal cortices.
Hippocampal formation.
Which four regions make up the sensory neocortex?
Parietal lobe.
Temporal lobe.
Prefrontal cortex.
Neocortex.
Which three regions make up the parahippocampal cortices?
Parahippocampal gyrus.
Perirhinal cortex.
Entorhinal cortex.
Which four regions make up the hippocampal formation?
Dentate granule cells.
CA3.
CA1.
Subiculum.
What is the main role of the entorhinal cortex in declarative memory?
Controls the flow of sensory information entering the hippocampus.
Which elements make up the trisynaptic pathway?
Entorhinal cortex –> dentate gyrus –>
CA3 –> CA1.
The expression of which receptor is extremely high in the CA2?
Adenosine A1 receptor.
Which substance is an adenosine receptor antagonist?
Caffeine.
What are the cognitive enhancing effects of caffeine?
Increase attention.
Enhances focus and mental acuity.
Improves memory.
What is the believed role of adenosine A1 receptors in the CA2?
Mediate the cognitive enhancing effects of caffeine.
Caffeine enhances synaptic transmission in which hippocampal area?
CA2.
What does BAC stand for?
Bacterial artificial chromosome.
What are BACs used for?
To express a gene of interest under a particular promoter.
What does AAV stand for?
Adeno-associated virus.
What are AAVs used for?
Used a vector to deliver a custom payload into custom tissues.
How does tetanus neurotoxin (TeNT) affect vesicle fusion and exocytosis?
Interferes with SNARE proteins that mediate vesicle fusion.
Prevents fusion of synaptic vesicles with presynaptic membrane.
Inhibits exocytosis.
What is the effect of silencing area CA2?
Impairs social recognition memory without affecting other hippocampus-dependent behaviours.
What is excitotoxicity?
Too much glutamate receptor activity causes neuronal damage and death.
What is the mechanism behind excitotoxicity?
Depolarisation causes sodium and calcium entry into AMPA and NMDA receptors.
Persistent stimulation causes too much calcium to build up inside the neuron.
What are the detrimental effects of sustained calcium overload?
Increased energy demand on neurons.
Mitochondrial dysfunction.
Energetic stress.
Which enzymes are affected by sustained calcium overload?
Proteases = cytoskeleton breakdown.
Endonucleases = DNA breakdown.
Phospholipases = release of arachidonic acid.
‘Suicide’ gene = apoptosis.
What are the three subfamilies of PKC isoforms, and how are they divided?
Conventional.
Novel.
Atypical.
Based on the cofactor(s) that activate them.
What is the structure of most PKC isoforms?
Regulatory N-terminal domain.
Hinge region.
Catalytic C-terminal domain.
Protein kinase M zeta (PKMZ) is an isoform of what?
PKCZ.
What is the structure of PKMZ?
Consists of catalytic domain only.
What is the role of PKMZ in LTP induction?
PKMZ is phosphorylated by PDK1 to achieve maximum activation.
What is the role of PKMZ in LTP maintenance?
PKMZ inhibits GluA2 AMPA receptor endocytosis.
How does zeta inhibitory peptide (ZIP) affect LTP?
Reverses established LTP by inhibiting PKMZ.
What is optogenetics?
The combination of genetics and optics to control well-defined events within specific cells of living tissue.
What is a channelrhodopsin (ChR)?
A light-sensitive ion channel.
What is the effect of light on ChRs?
Light absorption triggers a conformational change of the protein and gating of the channel.
What is a halorhodopsin?
A light-gated ion channel that is permeable to chloride.
What is the role of halorhodopsins?
Used to silence cells.
What is tetracycline-controlled transcriptional activation?
A method of inducible gene expression where transcription is reversibly turned on or off in the present of the antibiotic tetracycline or one of its derivatives.