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. Author manuscript; available in PMC: 2022 Apr 1.
Published in final edited form as: Trends Neurosci. 2021 Jan 21;44(4):248–259. doi: 10.1016/j.tins.2020.12.003

Figure 2. Proposed model of the Arc “life cycle”.

Figure 2.

Arc protein release (steps 1–4) 1. Neuronal activity induces transcription and trafficking of Arc mRNA to active dendrites where it is locally translated. 2. Arc protein oligomerizes and assembles into capsids, which encapsulate RNA. 3. Post translational modifications, such as palmitoylation, promote Arc interactions with the plasma membrane. 4. Arc capsids are released within extracellular vesicles (EVs) directly at the cell surface. Arc EV uptake (steps 5–8) 5. Cell surface receptors specify Arc EV uptake. 6. Arc EVs are endocytosed. 7. Arc capsid crosses the endosomal membrane and is disassembled. 8. Delivered Arc mRNA is translated into protein.