CGC Bibliography Paper 5092

Regulation of retrograde signaling at neuromuscular junctions by the novel C2 domain protein AEX-1.

Doi M, Iwasaki K

Medline:

11804572

Citation:

Neuron 33: 249-259 2002

Type:

ARTICLE

Genes:

aex-1 aex-5 dgk-1 egl-8 egl-30 gld-1 goa-1 lev-1 lin-15 lrp-1 snb-1 unc-13 unc-29 unc-49 tgDf1

Abstract:

Retrograde signaling from postsynaptic cells to presynaptic neurons Is essential for regulation of synaptic development, maintenance, and plasticity. Here we report that the novel protein AEX-1 controls retrograde signaling at neuromuscular junctions in C. elegans. aex-1 mutants show neural defects including reduced presynaptic activity and abnormal localization of the synaptic vesicle fusion protein UNC-13. Muscle-specific AEX-1 expression rescues these defects but neuron-specific expression does not. AEX-1 has an UNC-13 homologous domain and appears to regulate exocytosis in muscles. This retrograde signaling requires prohormone-convertase function in muscles, suggesting that a peptide is the retrograde signal. This signal regulates synaptic vesicle release via the EGL-30 Gqalpha protein at presynaptic terminals.