The formation of complex acetylcholine receptor clusters requires MuSK kinase activity and structural information from the MuSK extracellular domain.

ABSTRACT: Efficient synaptic transmission at the neuromuscular junction (NMJ) requires the topological maturation of the postsynaptic apparatus from an oval acetylcholine receptor (AChR)-rich plaque into a complex pretzel-shaped array of branches. However, compared to NMJ formation very little is known about the mechanisms that regulate NMJ maturation. Recently the process of in vivo transformation from plaque into pretzel has been reproduced in vitro by culturing myotubes aneurally on laminin-coated substrate. It was proposed that the formation of complex AChR clusters is regulated by a MuSK-dependent muscle intrinsic program. To elucidate the structure-function role of MuSK in the aneural maturation of AChR pretzels, we used muscle cell lines expressing MuSK mutant and chimeric proteins. Here we r

SUBMITTER: Mazhar S 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC3359500 | biostudies-literature | 2012 Apr

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature