In summary, localized, transient, and constitutive expression of miRNAs in teleost brain indicates their function in brain morphogenesis and maintenance of distinct subregions and cell types.
Prostaglandins induce glial release of glutamate [18]; glutamate can then act on neurons to regulate spine morphogenesis and synaptic plasticity.
Two non-receptor tyrosine kinases involved in neurite outgrowth, dendritic spine morphogenesis and synaptic plasticity, the focal adhesion kinase (FAK) and C-Src, also co-immunoprecipitated with Dp71.
Dp71-DAPC is also associated with key signaling proteins such as FAK, c-Src and Grb2, proteins known to contribute to neurite outgrowth, dendritic spine morphogenesis and synaptic plasticity [24] [26].
Hsa-miR-137, as a brain-enriched micro-RNA, has important roles during neurogenesis, including the proliferation and differentiation of neural stem cells, the regulation of dendritic morphogenesis, and synaptic plasticity [ 2, 7, 8].
Importantly, double mutant mice for Wnt7a and Dvl1 exhibit strong deficits in spine morphogenesis and synaptic strength in the hippocampus (Ciani et al., 2011).
Moreover, BCR coexists with Tiam1 as a Rac GEF-GAP complex to regulate spine morphogenesis and synaptic plasticity under the control of BDNF-TrkB signals [ 19].
β-catenin is implicated in Wnt independent dendritic morphogenesis and synaptic plasticity, and this may go some way to explaining the changes in synaptic complexity seen in DISC1 mutant mice.
