The Involvement of Neuron-Specific Factors in Dendritic Spinogenesis: Molecular Regulation and Association with Neurological Disorders

Figure 3

Syndecan-2 coordinates with calcium influx to control dendritic spine formation and maturation. Syndecan-2 links the CASK-mLIN7-NMDAR complex through its C2 motif and directs this complex to target to filopodial tips. It increases the accessibility of postsynaptic filopodia to presynaptic stimulation, which is critical for calcium influx to induce the filopodia-spines transition. In addition to linking mLIN7 and NMDAR, CASK interacts with the protein 4.1-F-actin cytoskeleton. This interaction provides a physical link between the membrane and cytoskeleton to stabilize the dendritic spine structure. GSN, gelsolin.