Neuron specific type

VILDP-1, VILDP-2, hippocalcin, neurocalcin, and VILIP-3 (also named hippocalcin-like 1 protein) are expressed in different cell types in the brain. All isoforms are neuronal-specific. 

Many different types of sensory receptors are located throughout the body. These receptors monitor the status of the internal environment or that of the surroundings. Sensory receptors are sensitive to specific types of stimuli and measure the value of a physiological variable. For example, arterial baroreceptors measure blood pressure and chemoreceptors measure the oxygen and carbon dioxide content of the blood. The information detected by these sensors then travels by way of afferent neuronal pathways to the central nervous system (CNS). The CNS is the integrative portion of the nervous system and consists of the (1) brain and the (2) spinal cord. 

In addition to the selective responses of adenylyl cyclases to GPy subunits, it is likely that different forms of Gp and Gy subunits influence the various forms of adenylyl cyclase in different ways [19]. There are five known forms of Gp subunits and 11 known forms of Gy subunits (see Ch. 19). Differential expression and regulation of these subunits could provide still additional mechanisms for selectively controlling adenylyl cyclase catalytic activity in specific neuronal cell types. 

This list is not intended to be comprehensive. The protein kinases listed are present in many cell types in addition to neurons and are included here because of their multiple functions in the nervous system, including regulation of neuron-specific phenomena. 

This list is not intended to be comprehensive but to indicate the wide array of neuronal proteins regulated by phosphorylation. Some of the proteins are specific to neurons but most are present in many cell types in addition to neurons and are included because their multiple functions in the nervous system include the regulation of neuron-specific phenomena. Not included are the many phosphoproteins present in diverse tissues, including brain, that play a role in generalized cellular processes, such as intermediary metabolism, and that do not appear to play a role in neuron-specific phenomena. NMDA, N-methyl-D-aspartate CREB, cAMP response element-binding proteins STAT, signal-transducing activators of transcription ... 

Abnormal phosphorylation of specific neural proteins may contribute to the development of Alzheimer s disease. Alzheimer s disease is a serious dementing illness of enormous medical and societal importance (see Ch. 47). It involves the degeneration of specific types of neuron in the brain. An invariable feature of Alzheimer s disease is the appearance of amyloid plaques. These plaques contain the A(3 amyloid protein, and there is some... 

Action potentials are the means whereby information is passed from one neuron to an adjacent neuron. The balance between the excitatory and inhibitory impulses determines how many action potentials will reach the axonal terminal and, by releasing a specific type of neurotransmitter from the terminal, influence the adjacent neuron. Thus, in summary, chemical information in the form of small neurotransmitter molecules released from axonal terminals is responsible for changing the membrane potential at the synaptic junctions which may occur on the dendrites or directly on the cell body. The action potential then passes down the axon to initiate the release... 

The postsynaptic neuron receives the neurotransmitter when the neurotransmitter engages a receptor site on the neuron s cell membrane. Each type of neurotransmitter will react with one specific type of receptor site and no other, similar to a lock and key. But it would not do to just let neurotransmitters sit there in the synapse causing unending activity, so there are other components in presynaptic neurons that take the extra neurotransmitters in a particular area back into the cell (this is called reuptake). Sometimes the neurotransmitters that have been taken back are broken down in the presynaptic neuron (by enzymes, such as monoamine oxidase, or MAO), and then are recycled in the vesicles for later use. There are at least 40 different chemicals that have been shown to act as neurotransmitters some of the most common are listed in Table 1.1. 

During development, programmed cell death is a common norm in developing neurons. However, the intrinsic pro-apoptotic pathw ays are obliterated as neurons mature. Thus, mere withdraw al of trophic factors does not suffice in inducing their death. Additionally, a genuine apoptotic signal is required for onset of self-suicide process in neurons. Specific gene-products undertake the apoptotic task in different types of neurons and different stimuli may induce distinct apoptotic pathw ays in them (Pettmann and Henderson, 1998). 

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