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Cell adhesion and synaptogenesis

Chen Gong, Wu Xia, Sebnem T

Department of Biology, The Huck Institutes of Life Sciences, The Pennsylvania State University, University Park, PA 16802

Abstract

Synapses are inter-neuronal connections that are fundamental working units in neural networks. How synapses are molecularly constructed is a fascinating question, which attracted scientists' attention for many decades. Neuromuscular junction, a field pioneered by Te-Pei FENG and many others, has been an excellent model for studying synaptogenesis and paved the way for our understanding of the synapse formation in the central nervous system. Recent studies shed new light on the molecular mechanisms of central synapse formation by discovering a group of cell adhesion molecules exerting potent synaptogenic effects. This review will focus on those cell adhesion molecules which can induce central synapse formation when expressed in non-neuronal cells.

Key words: synaptogenesis;cell adhesion;synapse assembly

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Citing This Article：

Chen Gong, Wu Xia, Sebnem T. Cell adhesion and synaptogenesis. Acta Physiol Sin 2007; 59 (6): 697-706 (in Chinese with English abstract).