Functional neurofilament (NF) subunit assemblies in synapses. Left panel: immunogold-labeled antibodies against the NFM subunit decorating synaptic structures in a linear pattern (immunogold particles outlined in blue) suggesting the presence of short NFs and protofilament/protofibril or unit length filament assemblies. In the upper inset, a filament within a postsynaptic bouton is decorated by immunogold antibodies to both NFL (large gold dots) and NFH (small gold dots). Morphometric analysis indicates a higher density of immunogold labeling in postsynaptic boutons than in preterminal dendrites or presynaptic terminals (graph inset). Middle panel: ultrastructural image of a human synapse depicts membranous vesicles, many of which appear to be associated with a loose network of short 10-nm filaments in the postsynaptic region. Right panel: evidence supports a biological mechanism whereby D1 dopamine receptors internalized on endosomes from the postsynaptic surface (red asterisks) dock on synaptic NF subunit assemblies (outlined in blue) where they are readily available to recycle on endosomes to the surface in response to ligand stimulation. The cartoon overlay of the EM image is the hypothetical depiction of this process. For more information on this topic, please refer to the article by Yuan et al. on pages 986-994.
. Author manuscript; available in PMC: 2018 Nov 1.
Published in final edited form as: Mol Psychiatry. 2015 Aug;20(8):915. doi: 10.1038/mp.2015.99
Functions of neurofilaments in synapses
A Yuan
1,2, H Sershen
2,3, Veeranna
1,2, BS Basavarajappa
4,5, A Kumar
1,2, A Hashim
3, M Berg
1, J-H Lee
1,2, Y Sato
1, MV Rao
1,2, PS Mohan
1, V Dyakin
1, J-P Julien
6, VM-Y Lee
7, RA Nixon
1,2,8
A Yuan
1Center for Dementia Research, Nathan Kline Institute, Orangeburg, NY, USA
2Department of Psychiatry, New York University School of Medicine, New York, NY, USA
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H Sershen
2Department of Psychiatry, New York University School of Medicine, New York, NY, USA
3Neurochemistry Division, Nathan Kline Institute, Orangeburg, NY, USA
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Veeranna
1Center for Dementia Research, Nathan Kline Institute, Orangeburg, NY, USA
2Department of Psychiatry, New York University School of Medicine, New York, NY, USA
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BS Basavarajappa
4Analytical Psychopharmacology Division, Nathan Kline Institute, Orangeburg, NY, USA
5Department of Psychiatry, College of Physicians and Surgeons, Columbia University, New York, NY, USA
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A Kumar
1Center for Dementia Research, Nathan Kline Institute, Orangeburg, NY, USA
2Department of Psychiatry, New York University School of Medicine, New York, NY, USA
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A Hashim
3Neurochemistry Division, Nathan Kline Institute, Orangeburg, NY, USA
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M Berg
1Center for Dementia Research, Nathan Kline Institute, Orangeburg, NY, USA
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J-H Lee
1Center for Dementia Research, Nathan Kline Institute, Orangeburg, NY, USA
2Department of Psychiatry, New York University School of Medicine, New York, NY, USA
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Y Sato
1Center for Dementia Research, Nathan Kline Institute, Orangeburg, NY, USA
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MV Rao
1Center for Dementia Research, Nathan Kline Institute, Orangeburg, NY, USA
2Department of Psychiatry, New York University School of Medicine, New York, NY, USA
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PS Mohan
1Center for Dementia Research, Nathan Kline Institute, Orangeburg, NY, USA
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V Dyakin
1Center for Dementia Research, Nathan Kline Institute, Orangeburg, NY, USA
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J-P Julien
6Centre de Recherche du Centre Hospitalier de l'Université Laval, Département d'anatomie et physiologie de l'Université Laval, Québec, QC, Canada
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VM-Y Lee
7Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
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RA Nixon
1Center for Dementia Research, Nathan Kline Institute, Orangeburg, NY, USA
2Department of Psychiatry, New York University School of Medicine, New York, NY, USA
8Cell Biology, New York University School of Medicine, New York, NY, USA
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1Center for Dementia Research, Nathan Kline Institute, Orangeburg, NY, USA
2Department of Psychiatry, New York University School of Medicine, New York, NY, USA
3Neurochemistry Division, Nathan Kline Institute, Orangeburg, NY, USA
4Analytical Psychopharmacology Division, Nathan Kline Institute, Orangeburg, NY, USA
5Department of Psychiatry, College of Physicians and Surgeons, Columbia University, New York, NY, USA
6Centre de Recherche du Centre Hospitalier de l'Université Laval, Département d'anatomie et physiologie de l'Université Laval, Québec, QC, Canada
7Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
8Cell Biology, New York University School of Medicine, New York, NY, USA
PMCID: PMC6211566 NIHMSID: NIHMS991529 PMID: 26201270
The publisher's version of this article is available at Mol Psychiatry