TY - JOUR
T1 - The mechanisms and functions of spontaneous neurotransmitter release
AU - Kavalali, Ege T.
N1 - Publisher Copyright:
© 2014 Macmillan Publishers Limited. All rights reserved.
PY - 2015/12/19
Y1 - 2015/12/19
N2 - Fast synaptic communication in the brain requires synchronous vesicle fusion that is evoked by action potential-induced Ca 2+ influx. However, synaptic terminals also release neurotransmitters by spontaneous vesicle fusion, which is independent of presynaptic action potentials. A functional role for spontaneous neurotransmitter release events in the regulation of synaptic plasticity and homeostasis, as well as the regulation of certain behaviours, has been reported. In addition, there is evidence that the presynaptic mechanisms underlying spontaneous release of neurotransmitters and their postsynaptic targets are segregated from those of evoked neurotransmission. These findings challenge current assumptions about neuronal signalling and neurotransmission, as they indicate that spontaneous neurotransmission has an autonomous role in interneuronal communication that is distinct from that of evoked release.
AB - Fast synaptic communication in the brain requires synchronous vesicle fusion that is evoked by action potential-induced Ca 2+ influx. However, synaptic terminals also release neurotransmitters by spontaneous vesicle fusion, which is independent of presynaptic action potentials. A functional role for spontaneous neurotransmitter release events in the regulation of synaptic plasticity and homeostasis, as well as the regulation of certain behaviours, has been reported. In addition, there is evidence that the presynaptic mechanisms underlying spontaneous release of neurotransmitters and their postsynaptic targets are segregated from those of evoked neurotransmission. These findings challenge current assumptions about neuronal signalling and neurotransmission, as they indicate that spontaneous neurotransmission has an autonomous role in interneuronal communication that is distinct from that of evoked release.
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U2 - 10.1038/nrn3875
DO - 10.1038/nrn3875
M3 - Review article
C2 - 25524119
AN - SCOPUS:84925550250
SN - 1471-003X
VL - 16
SP - 5
EP - 16
JO - Nature Reviews Neuroscience
JF - Nature Reviews Neuroscience
IS - 1
ER -