| First Author | Pitcher GM | Year | 2008 |
| Journal | Neuroreport | Volume | 19 |
| Issue | 2 | Pages | 139-43 |
| PubMed ID | 18185097 | Mgi Jnum | J:133755 |
| Mgi Id | MGI:3784110 | Doi | 10.1097/WNR.0b013e3282f3da10 |
| Citation | Pitcher GM, et al. (2008) ErbB4 is a suppressor of long-term potentiation in the adult hippocampus. Neuroreport 19(2):139-43 |
| abstractText | ErbB4 has emerged as a leading susceptibility gene for schizophrenia but the function of the ErbB4 receptor in the adult brain is unknown. Here, we show in the adult hippocampus that long-term potentiation (LTP) of transmission at Schaffer collateral CA1 synapses was markedly enhanced in mutant mice lacking ErbB4. Concordantly, LTP was enhanced by acutely blocking ErbB4 in wild-type animals, indicating that ErbB4 activity constitutively suppresses LTP. Moreover, increasing ErbB4 signaling further suppressed LTP. By contrast, altering ErbB4 activity did not affect basal synaptic transmission or short-term facilitation. Our findings suggest that cognitive deficits in schizophrenia may be a consequence of hyperfunction of ErbB4 signaling leading to suppressed glutamatergic synaptic plasticity, thus opening new approaches for the treatment of this disorder. |
