Microtubules in Dendritic Spine Development
- 1Department of Neuroscience and Cell Biology, University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey, Robert Wood Johnson Medical School, Piscataway, New Jersey 08854, and
- 2Department of Cell Biology and Neuroscience, Rutgers University, Piscataway, New Jersey 08854
- Correspondence should be addressed to James Q. Zheng at his present address, Department of Cell Biology, Emory University School of Medicine, 615 Michael Street, Atlanta, GA 30322. james.zheng{at}emory.edu
Abstract
It is generally believed that only the actin cytoskeleton resides in dendritic spines and controls spine morphology and plasticity. Here, we report that microtubules (MTs) are present in spines and that shRNA knockdown of the MT plus-end-binding protein EB3 significantly reduces spine formation. Furthermore, stabilization and inhibition of MTs by low doses of taxol and nocodazole enhance and impair spine formation elicited by BDNF (brain-derived neurotrophic factor), respectively. Therefore, MTs play an important role in the control and regulation of dendritic spine development and plasticity.
- Copyright © 2008 Society for Neuroscience 0270-6474/08/2812120-05$15.00/0
