This project focuses on elucidating the molecular sites on vesicular neurotransmitter transporters that provide diversity and specificity for neurotransmitter uptake and targeting to sites of synaptic release. Recently, we showed that two proteins (VGLUT1 and VGLUT2) that transport glutamate into synaptic vesicles (SSVs) are selectively expressed on the SSVs in nerve terminals defining two classes of glutamatergic synapses in the CNS. We have now molecularly identified and functionally characterized a third isoform VGLUT3 and show that it is expressed in the varicosities and nerve terminals of a novel subset of excitatory neurons in the brain. The existence of pathway-specific, differential and complementary excitatory neurons in the central nervous system suggests that these three vesicular glutamate transporters may have distinct physiological roles in neurotransmission. Therefore, the overall goals for the next grant period are: 1) to define the differences in intrinsic functional activities of the three isoforms to better understand the mechanism of vesicular glutamate transport and 2) to identify the sites important for specific targeting to varicosities and axon terminals that might provide diversity in the functional capacity, sensitivity and plasticity of glutamatergic synapses. The results of these studies may provide the basis for future studies that can examine the differential role of specific sets of neurons in glutamate toxicity associated with seizure disorders and various neurodegenerative diseases.
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