Topic: Metabotropic glutamate receptor-dependent long-term depression

Metabotropic glutamate receptor-dependent long-term depression (mGluR-LTD) is an important form of synaptic plasticity that occurs in many regions of the brain and is the underlying mechanism for several learning paradigms. In the hippocampus, mGluR-LTD is manifested by the weakening of synaptic transmission and elimination of dendritic spines. Interestingly, not all spines respond or undergo plasticity equally in response to mGluR-LTD. A subset of mature and more stable dendritic spines containing synaptopodin (SP), an actin-associated protein involved in local protein synthesis and calcium d