Shank1, also called SSTRIP (Somatostatin receptor-interacting protein), is a brain-specific protein that plays a role in the construction of postsynaptic density (PSD) and the maturation of dendritic spines [, ]. Mice deficient in Shank1 show altered PSD composition, thinner PSDs, smaller dendritic spines, and weaker basal synaptic transmission, although synaptic plasticity is normal. They show increased anxiety and impaired fear memory, but also show better spatial learning [, , ]. A Shank protein carries scaffolding functions through multiple sites of protein-protein interaction in its domain architecture, including ankyrin (ANK) repeats, a long proline rich region, as well as SH3, PDZ, and SAM domains.This entry represents the SH3 domain of Shank1 which binds GRIP, a scaffold protein that binds AMPA receptors and Eph receptors/ligands [].
