Integrin α3 is required for late postnatal stability of dendrite arbors, dendritic spines and synapses, and mouse behavior.

Most dendrite branches and a large fraction of dendritic spines in the adult rodent forebrain are stable for extended periods of time. Destabilization of these structures compromises brain function and is a major contributing factor to psychiatric and neurodegenerative diseases. Integrins are a class of transmembrane extracellular matrix receptors that function as αß heterodimers and activate signaling cascades regulating the actin cytoskeleton. Here we identify integrin α3 as a key mediator of neuronal stability. Dendrites, dendritic spines, and synapses develop normally in mice with selective loss of integrin α3 in excitatory forebrain neurons, reaching their mature sizes and densities through postnatal day 21 (P21). However, by P42, integrin α3 mutant mice exhibit significant reductions in hippocampal dendrite arbor size and complexity, loss of dendritic spine and synapse densities, and impairments in hippocampal-dependent behavior. Furthermore, gene-dosage experiments demonstrate that integrin α3 interacts functionally with the Arg nonreceptor tyrosine kinase to activate p190RhoGAP, which inhibits RhoA GTPase and regulates hippocampal dendrite and synapse stability and mouse behavior. Together, our data support a fundamental role for integrin α3 in regulating dendrite arbor stability, synapse maintenance, and proper hippocampal function. In addition, these results provide a biochemical and structural explanation for the defects in long-term potentiation, learning, and memory reported previously in mice lacking integrin α3.

ECM receptors in neuronal structure, synaptic plasticity, and behavior.

During central nervous system development, extracellular matrix (ECM) receptors and their ligands play key roles as guidance molecules, informing neurons where and when to send axonal and dendritic projections, establish connections, and form synapses between pre- and postsynaptic cells. Once stable synapses are formed, many ECM receptors transition in function to control the maintenance of stable connections between neurons and regulate synaptic plasticity. These receptors bind to and are activated by ECM ligands. In turn, ECM receptor activation modulates downstream signaling cascades that control cytoskeletal dynamics and synaptic activity to regulate neuronal structure and function and thereby impact animal behavior. The activities of cell adhesion receptors that mediate interactions between pre- and postsynaptic partners are also strongly influenced by ECM composition. This chapter highlights a number of ECM receptors, their roles in the control of synapse structure and function, and the impact of these receptors on synaptic plasticity and animal behavior.

Arg kinase signaling in dendrite and synapse stabilization pathways: memory, cocaine sensitivity, and stress.

The Abl2/Arg nonreceptor tyrosine kinase is enriched in dendritic spines where it is essential for maintaining dendrite and synapse stability in the postnatal mouse brain. Arg is activated downstream of integrin α3ß1 receptors and it regulates the neuronal actin cytoskeleton by directly binding F-actin and via phosphorylation of substrates including p190RhoGAP and cortactin. Neurons in mice lacking Arg or integrin α3ß1 develop normally through postnatal day 21 (P21), however by P42 mice exhibit major reductions in dendrite arbor size and complexity, and lose dendritic spines and synapses. As a result, mice with loss of Arg and Arg-dependent signaling pathways have impairments in memory tasks, heightened sensitivity to cocaine, and vulnerability to corticosteroid-induced neuronal remodeling. Therefore, understanding the molecular mechanisms of Arg regulation may lead to therapeutic approaches to treat human psychiatric and neurodegenerative diseases in which neuronal structure is destabilized.

Delayed amyloid plaque deposition and behavioral deficits in outcrossed AßPP/PS1 mice.

Alzheimer's disease (AD) is a progressive neurodegenerative dementia characterized by amyloid plaque accumulation, synapse/dendrite loss, and cognitive impairment. Transgenic mice expressing mutant forms of amyloid-ß precursor protein (AßPP) and presenilin-1 (PS1) recapitulate several aspects of this disease and provide a useful model system for studying elements of AD progression. AßPP/PS1 mice have been previously shown to exhibit behavioral deficits and amyloid plaque deposition between 4-9 months of age. We crossed AßPP/PS1 animals with mice of a mixed genetic background (C57BL/6 × 129/SvJ) and investigated the development of AD-like features in the resulting outcrossed mice. The onset of memory-based behavioral impairment is delayed considerably in outcrossed AßPP/PS1 mice relative to inbred mice on a C57BL/6 background. While inbred AßPP/PS1 mice develop deficits in radial-arm water maze performance and novel object recognition as early as 8 months, outcrossed AßPP/PS1 mice do not display defects until 18 months. Within the forebrain, we find that inbred AßPP/PS1 mice have significantly higher amyloid plaque burden at 12 months than outcrossed AßPP/PS1 mice of the same age. Surprisingly, inbred AßPP/PS1 mice at 8 months have low plaque burden, suggesting that plaque burden alone cannot explain the accompanying behavioral deficits. Analysis of AßPP processing revealed that elevated levels of soluble Aß correlate with the degree of behavioral impairment in both strains. Taken together, these findings suggest that animal behavior, amyloid plaque deposition, and AßPP processing are sensitive to genetic differences between mouse strains.

Metabotropic glutamate receptor 5 is a coreceptor for Alzheimer aß oligomer bound to cellular prion protein.

Soluble amyloid-ß oligomers (Aßo) trigger Alzheimer's disease (AD) pathophysiology and bind with high affinity to cellular prion protein (PrP(C)). At the postsynaptic density (PSD), extracellular Aßo bound to lipid-anchored PrP(C) activates intracellular Fyn kinase to disrupt synapses. Here, we screened transmembrane PSD proteins heterologously for the ability to couple Aßo-PrP(C) with Fyn. Only coexpression of the metabotropic glutamate receptor, mGluR5, allowed PrP(C)-bound Aßo to activate Fyn. PrP(C) and mGluR5 interact physically, and cytoplasmic Fyn forms a complex with mGluR5. Aßo-PrP(C) generates mGluR5-mediated increases of intracellular calcium in Xenopus oocytes and in neurons, and the latter is also driven by human AD brain extracts. In addition, signaling by Aßo-PrP(C)-mGluR5 complexes mediates eEF2 phosphorylation and dendritic spine loss. For mice expressing familial AD transgenes, mGluR5 antagonism reverses deficits in learning, memory, and synapse density. Thus, Aßo-PrP(C) complexes at the neuronal surface activate mGluR5 to disrupt neuronal function.