Differential Expression of SNAP-25 Protein Isoforms During Divergent Vesicle Fusion Events of Neural Development

• Published in: Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences - PNAS Vol. 92; no. 5; pp. 1510 - 1514
• Main Authors: Bark, I. Christina, Hahn, Klaus M., Ryabinin, Audrey E., Wilson, Michael C.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: United States National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America 28-02-1995; National Acad Sciences; National Academy of Sciences
• Subjects: Adrenal Glands - metabolism; Alternative Splicing; Animals; Base Sequence; Brain; Brain Stem; Cell Compartmentation; Cell membranes; Exons; Gene Expression Regulation, Developmental; In Situ Hybridization; Male; Medicin och hälsovetenskap; Membrane Fusion; Membrane Proteins; Messenger RNA; Mice; Mice, Inbred BALB C; Molecular Sequence Data; Nerve Tissue Proteins - genetics; Nerve Tissue Proteins - metabolism; Neurites; Neurology; Neurons; Neurons - metabolism; Oligonucleotides, Antisense - chemistry; P branes; PC12 Cells; Pituitary Gland - metabolism; Protein isoforms; Proteins; Rats; Rats, Wistar; RNA; Synaptosomal-Associated Protein 25
• ISSN: 0027-8424; 1091-6490
• DOI: 10.1073/pnas.92.5.1510

The presynaptic plasma membrane protein SNAP-25 (synaptosome-associated protein of 25 kDa) has been implicated as one of several neural-specific components that direct constitutive fusion mechanisms to the regulated vesicle trafficking and exocytosis of neurotransmitter release. There exist two alternatively spliced isoforms of SNAP-25, a and b, which differ in a putative membrane-interacting domain. We show that these two isoforms have distinct quantitative and anatomical patterns of expression during brain development, in neurons, and in neuroendocrine cells and that the proteins localize differently in neurites of transfected PC12 pheochromocytoma cells. These findings indicate that alternative isoforms of SNAP-25 may play distinct roles in vesicular fusion events required for membrane addition during axonal outgrowth and for release of neuromodulatory peptides and neurotransmitters.