Life Sciences Commons^™

Investigation Of How A Kinesin-1 Mutation Affects The Synaptic Localization Of The Periactive Zone Protein Apt-4, Ian Harden

Honors College

Dysfunctional or loss of synaptic transmission is a major contributing factor to many neurological and neurodevelopmental diseases, such as Alzheimer’s disease. To develop novel approaches to treating these diseases, understanding the structures and proteins related to synaptic development and function is essential. Within the synapse is the presynaptic site, containing the active and periactive zones, at which synaptic vesicles containing neurotransmitters are released. The active zone’s primary role is mediating neurotransmitter release via exocytosis, and the periactive zone sorts and recycles synaptic vesicles via endocytosis. However, how periactive zone proteins localize to the presynapse and how they interact with the …