Significance of the degree of synaptic Zn2+ signaling in cognition

Zinc is a trace nutrient for the brain and a signal factor to serve for brain function. A portion of zinc is released from glutamatergic (zincergic) neuron terminals in the brain. Synaptic Zn 2+ signaling is involved in synaptic plasticity such as long-term potentiaion (LTP), which is a cellular mec...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Published in:Biometals 2016-04, Vol.29 (2), p.177-185
Main Authors: Takeda, Atsushi, Tamano, Haruna
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Animals
Biochemistry
Biomedical and Life Sciences
Cell Biology
Cognition - physiology
Hippocampus - physiology
Homeostasis
Humans
Life Sciences
Medicine/Public Health
Microbiology
Pharmacology/Toxicology
Plant Physiology
Synaptic Transmission
Zinc - deficiency
Zinc - physiology
Citations: Items that this one cites
Items that cite this one
Online Access:Get full text
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
Description
Summary:Zinc is a trace nutrient for the brain and a signal factor to serve for brain function. A portion of zinc is released from glutamatergic (zincergic) neuron terminals in the brain. Synaptic Zn 2+ signaling is involved in synaptic plasticity such as long-term potentiaion (LTP), which is a cellular mechanism of memory. The block and/or loss of synaptic Zn 2+ signaling in the hippocampus and amygdala with Zn 2+ chelators affect cognition, while the role of synaptic Zn 2+ signal is poorly understood, because zinc-binding proteins are great in number and multi-functional. Chronic zinc deficiency also affects cognition and cognitive decline induced by zinc deficiency might be associated with the increase in plasma glucocorticoid rather than the decrease in synaptic Zn 2+ signaling. On the other hand, excess glutamatergic (zincergic) neuron activity induces excess influx of extracellular Zn 2+ into hippocampal neurons, followed by cognitive decline. Intracellular Zn 2+ dynamics, which is linked to presynaptic glutamate release, is critical for LTP and cognitive performance. This paper deals with insight into cognition from zinc as a nutrient and signal factor.
ISSN:0966-0844
1572-8773
DOI:10.1007/s10534-015-9907-z