title: Synapse biology in the 'circuit-age'-paths toward molecular connectomics.
abstract: The neural connectome is a critical determinant of brain function. Circuits of precisely wired neurons, and the features of transmission at the synapses connecting them, are thought to dictate information processing in the brain. While recent technological advances now allow to define the anatomical and functional neural connectome at unprecedented resolution, the elucidation of the molecular mechanisms that establish the precise patterns of connectivity and the functional characteristics of synapses has remained challenging. Here, we describe the power and limitations of genetic approaches in the analysis of mechanisms that control synaptic connectivity and function, and discuss how recent methodological developments in proteomics might be used to elucidate the molecular synaptic connectome that is at the basis of the neural connectome.
authors.affiliation: Biozentrum, University of Basel, Klingelbergstraße 50-70, 4056 Basel, Switzerland; Institute of Neuroanatomy and Cell Biology, Hannover Medical School, Carl-Neuberg-Straße 1, 30625 Hannover, Germany.
authors.forename: Dietmar
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Schreiner
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurology, Northwestern University, Feinberg School of Medicine, 303 East Chicago Avenue, Chicago, IL 60611, USA.
authors.forename: Jeffrey N
authors.initials: JN
authors.lastname: Savas
authors.affiliation: Univ. Bordeaux, IINS, UMR 5297, F-33000 Bordeaux, France; CNRS, IINS, UMR 5297, F-33000 Bordeaux, France.
authors.forename: Etienne
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Herzog
authors.affiliation: Department of Molecular Neurobiology, Max Planck Institute of Experimental Medicine, Hermann-Rein-Straße 3, 37075 Göttingen, Germany.
authors.forename: Nils
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Brose
authors.affiliation: VIB Center for Brain and Disease Research, Herestraat 49, 3000 Leuven, Belgium; Department of Neurosciences, KU Leuven, Herestraat 49, 3000 Leuven, Belgium. Electronic address: joris.dewit@kuleuven.be.
authors.forename: Joris
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: de Wit
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001921:Brain / Q000502:physiology*; D063132:Connectome / Q000639:trends; D006801:Humans; D009474:Neurons / Q000502:physiology; D013569:Synapses / Q000502:physiology*