Topic: mathematical model

Neurons use a variety of strategies, including local protein synthesis and pre-established protein pools inside dendrites, to maintain the dynamic proteome requirements for appropriate synaptic activity. While certain proteins have local mRNA that allows for on-demand synthesis at the synapse, the vast majority do not. This poses an important question: how can these proteins manage their copy number without boosting the synthesis rate locally? This study looks into the hypothesis that the amount of the protein pool in dendrites corresponds with the presence or lack of dendritic mRNA for local

One crucial component for synaptic functionality is the proteome within the spines, which is fueled by local mRNA translation and the influx of proteins from the dendrite. A neuron could recruit proteins from the dendritic pool or increase local synthesis to increase the protein number at the synapses. However, since only about 10-20% of proteins have local mRNAs in the dendrites, the question arises; how do the other 80-90% of dendritic and synaptic proteins dynamically control their copy numbers without having the ability to increase the synthesis rate of the protein of interest locally. We

Hearing losses are the most prevalent sensory disorder. The hearing organ, the organ of Corti, is located in a bony capsule in the pars petrosa of the temporal bone. Its spiralling morphology makes it difficult to investigate the cellular mechanism of hearing. The cells provide morphological and physiological differences, called tonotopy, which is the base of the frequency selectivity. The supporting cells have similar variability to the receptor cells, however they receive little attention. One type of the supporting cells are the Deiters cells which are in close connection with the outer hai

Microtubules play a crucial role in dendritic and axonal physiology through acting as railroad tracks on which numerous factors are transported. More than one hundred microtubules in a neurite form a large array that changes in composition during the development of dendrites and the axon. Throughout development, this large array was long thought to act as the stationary backbone of neurons. In contrast, we recently made the surprising discovery that the microtubule array in fact constantly moves towards the soma as a whole. This microtubule retrograde flow (MT-RF) destabilizes neurite growth.