Targeting Of 5-HT1A Receptors, Journal Of Neuroscience

Main Category: Depression
Also Included In: Psychology / Psychiatry;  Neurology / Neuroscience
Article Date: 06 Aug 2008 - 4:00 PDT

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Depression is associated with decreased binding of serotonin 5 HT_1A receptors. Receptors must be targeted to the appropriate membrane domain function properly, and although trafficking mechanisms have been elucidated for some receptors, little is known about how serotonin receptors are targeted to dendrites.

Because the C terminus of 5 HT_1A receptors is required for targeting, Carrel et al. screened for proteins that directly interact with this domain in rat hippocampus. They identified Yif1B, a homolog of a yeast protein involved in transport between the endoplasmic reticulum (ER) and Golgi apparatus.

Yif1B colocalized with 5 HT_1A receptor in vesicle-like puncta in the soma and proximal dendrites of hippocampal neurons, and colocalized with ER markers in transfected cell lines. The authors report that knockdown of Yif1B by RNA inhibition in cultured neurons prevented expression of 5 HT_1A receptors in distal dendrites, but did not alter the expression pattern of other receptors, suggesting a specific role in targeting 5 HT_1A receptors.

Journal of Neuroscience

The Journal of Neuroscience is the official journal of the Society for Neuroscience. The Journal publishes papers on a broad range of topics of general interest to those working on the nervous system.

Journal of Neuroscience