Nerve cells communicate via a synapse. A synapse is a space in the connection between nerve cells, especially the space between the presynaptic membrane (an axon) and the postsynaptic membrane (a dendrite). Conducted out of the cell axons, dendrites (usually) to it. The ‘message is transmitted’ via the synapse by neurotransmitters.The human brain has 100 billion individual nerve cells that communicate via a complex network of connections. Errors in the communication of these cells are often at the base of brain and nerve diseases such as Alzheimer’s. In the search for possible solutions to these diseases, an important aspect is to understand how the connections between nerve cells develop.
This research was funded by the FWO, KULeuven grants Methusalem, IWT and VIB.
Led by Bassem Hassan and in collaboration with Wim Annaert, Laura Nicholas, Ariane Ramaekers and colleagues identified the lack of markers, Denmark (dendritic marker), a hybrid between a mouse protein and a fluorescent protein. The high specificity of this indicator for the input compartment of nerve cells in Drosophila gives rise to hope that this can be used in other model organisms.
Although Drosophila has long been used to study the connections between nerve cells, a specific marker was still missing. To understand the whole circuit between nerve cells, markers are needed for the various compartments of nerve cells (presynaptic or postsynaptic cells, the cell and the output or input).