A dynamic corral model of receptor trafficking at a synapse
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Accepted version
Author(s)
Bressloff, Paul C
Earnshaw, Berton A
Type
Journal Article
Abstract
The postsynaptic density (PSD) is a cytoskeletal specialization within the postsynaptic membrane of a neuron that helps to concentrate and organize neurotransmitter receptors at a chemical synapse. The total number of receptors within the PSD, which is a major factor in determining the physiological strength or weight of a synapse, fluctuates due to the surface diffusion of receptors into and out of the PSD, and the interactions of receptors with scaffolding proteins and cytoskeletal elements within the PSD. In this article, we present a stochastic model of protein receptor trafficking at the PSD that takes into account these various processes. The PSD is treated as a stochastically gated corral, which contributes a source of extrinsic or environmental noise that supplements the intrinsic noise arising from small receptor numbers. Using a combination of stochastic analysis and Monte Carlo simulations, we determine the time-dependent variation in the mean and variance of synaptic receptor numbers for a variety of initial conditions that simulate fluorescence recovery after photobleaching experiments, and indicate how such data might be used to infer certain properties of the PSD.
Date Issued
2009-03-04
Date Acceptance
2008-12-01
Citation
Biophysical Journal, 2009, 96 (5), pp.1786-1802
ISSN
0006-3495
Publisher
Biophysical Society
Start Page
1786
End Page
1802
Journal / Book Title
Biophysical Journal
Volume
96
Issue
5
Copyright Statement
Copyright © Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved. This manuscript version is made available under the CC-BY-NC-ND 4.0 license https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/
Identifier
http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.bpj.2008.12.3889
Publication Status
Published
Date Publish Online
2009-03-03