Topic: EPAC

Cyclic adenosine monophosphate (cAMP) is a ubiquitous second messenger that, when raised by forskolin, induces long-term potentiation (LTP) of synaptic transmission and expression of immediate early genes such as FOS by activating the postsynaptic PKA-CREB pathway. However, most studies have relied on pharmacological tools whose actions are not confined to specific cells or synaptic compartments. Here, we use photoactivatable adenylyl cyclases to raise cAMP in single postsynaptic hippocampal CA1 neurons, in many presynaptic CA3 or postsynaptic CA1 neurons or in all excitatory neurons to invest

Restoring the regenerative capacity of adult neurons after spinal cord injury has been an important challenge of the past decades. Unlike the peripheral branch of the nervous system, CNS axons fail to regenerate following injury. This inability has a two-fold origin, a neuron-extrinsic and -intrinsic one. The former has been well described in literature and is related to the inhibitory effect of the CNS environment on outgrowth of adult neurites. The latter has been attributed to the cellular makeup of adult neurons which is primed toward synaptic maturity and functionality, as opposed to rege