AIDA-1 Moves out of the Postsynaptic Density Core under Excitatory Conditions

PLoS One. 2015 Sep 10;10(9):e0137216. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0137216. eCollection 2015.

Abstract

AIDA-1 is highly enriched in postsynaptic density (PSD) fractions and is considered a major component of the PSD complex. In the present study, immunogold electron microscopy was applied to determine localization as well as the activity-induced redistribution of AIDA-1 at the PSD using two antibodies that recognize two different epitopes. In cultured rat hippocampal neurons under basal conditions, immunogold label for AIDA-1 is mostly located within the dense core of the PSD, with a median distance of ~30 nm from the postsynaptic membrane. Under excitatory conditions, such as depolarization with high K+ (90 mM, 2 min) or application of NMDA (50 μM, 2 min), AIDA-1 label density at the PSD core is reduced to 40% of controls and the median distance of label from the postsynaptic membrane increases to ~55 nm. The effect of excitatory conditions on the postsynaptic distribution of AIDA-1 is reversed within 30 minutes after returning to control conditions. The reversible removal of AIDA-1 from the PSD core under excitatory conditions is similar to the redistribution of another abundant PSD protein, SynGAP. Both SynGAP-alpha1 and AIDA-1 are known to bind PSD-95. Activity-induced transient translocation of these abundant proteins from the PSD core could promote structural flexibility, vacate sites on PSD-95 for the insertion of other components and thus may create a window for synaptic modification.

Publication types

  • Research Support, N.I.H., Intramural

MeSH terms

  • Animals
  • Carrier Proteins / metabolism*
  • Cells, Cultured
  • Hippocampus / cytology
  • N-Methylaspartate / pharmacology*
  • Neurons / cytology
  • Neurons / metabolism
  • Neurons / ultrastructure
  • Post-Synaptic Density / drug effects
  • Post-Synaptic Density / metabolism*
  • Post-Synaptic Density / ultrastructure
  • Potassium / pharmacology*
  • Rats, Sprague-Dawley

Substances

  • Anks1b protein, rat
  • Carrier Proteins
  • N-Methylaspartate
  • Potassium