Super-resolution imaging studies have revealed the presence of a membrane-associated periodic skeleton (MPS) structure, composed of actin, spectrin and associated proteins, in the axons and dendrites of neurons; however, the function of the MPS is unclear. Zhou et al. used stochastic optical reconstruction microscopy (STORM) in cultured mouse neurons to show that, upon extracellular stimulation, the MPS serves as a signalling platform for the co-localization of various signalling molecules, enabling the transactivation of receptor tyrosine kinases and induction of downstream signalling pathways.
References
Original article
Zhou, R. et al. Membrane-associated periodic skeleton is a signaling platform for RTK transactivation in neurons. Science 365, 929–934 (2019)
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Whalley, K. A platform for coordinated signalling. Nat Rev Neurosci 20, 647 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41583-019-0225-2
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41583-019-0225-2