Skip to main content
. Author manuscript; available in PMC: 2021 Apr 1.
Published in final edited form as: Trends Neurosci. 2020 Feb 22;43(4):227–241. doi: 10.1016/j.tins.2020.01.009

Figure 3, Key Figure: ASD-linked ‘synaptic’ and ‘developmental’ proteins involved in synaptic homeostasis.

Figure 3,

This cartoon view of a neuron, with an expanded synaptic spine to show proteins, illustrates some of the many ASD-linked proteins involved in synaptic homeostasis and plasticity. At the synapse, neurotransmitter receptors, tethered in place by synaptic adhesion molecules and intracellular scaffolding proteins, transmit molecular cues to kinases and other effectors. Signal transduction cascades carry these signals to the nucleus, where histone modifying enzymes and helicases regulate chromatin accessibility. RNA is then spliced and further processed into export granules, which are transported into the dendrite for local protein synthesis. Disruption of any protein in this complex and spatially distributed process could alter the overall homeostatic balance of the synapse. ASD-linked genes are involved at each step.

Gene/protein acronyms, ordered according to the two “key” insets: DLGs: Disks large homologs; AMPAR: AMPA-selective glutamate receptor; NMDAR: N-methyl-D-aspartate receptor; mGluRs: metabotropic glutamate receptors; CaV42.1: Voltage-gated calcium channel 2.1; Shanks: SH3 and multiple ankyrin repeat domains proteins; SynGAP: Synaptic Ras GTPase-activating protein; CaMKII: Calcium/calmodulin-dependent protein kinase type II; PI3K: Phosphatidylinositol 4,5-bisphosphate 3-kinase; PTEN: Phosphatidylinositol 3,4,5-trisphosphate 3-phosphatase and dual-specificity protein phosphatase; FMR1: Fragile X mental retardation protein 1; EIF4: Eukaryotic translation initiation factor 4; CHD8: Chromodomain-helicase-DNA-binding protein 8; HDACs: Histone deacetylases; DNAMT: DNA methyltransferase.