Local protein synthesis and mRNA trafficking

It is well established that new protein synthesis is required for long-term memory storage. Furthermore, the activity-dependent regulation of local protein synthesis (LPS) in the dendritic compartment is an attractive candidate mechanism for regulating the persistence and spatial specificity of late-phase long-term synaptic plasticity Recent work in the lab has demonstrated that isolated dendrites of mature hippocampal neurons are able to synthesize proteins but the role of synaptic activity in driving input-specific protein synthesis remains to be determined. We are also studying the regulation of mRNA transport to dendrites, the regulation of LPS by various types of synaptic activity, and the signaling mechanisms that couple synaptic activity to the protein synthesis machinery.

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