Distinct molecular programs regulate synapse specificity in cortical inhibitory circuits

Abstract

Inhibitory synapse specificity As neurons build circuits in the developing brain, they select not only what other neurons to connect to but also where on that neuron they will touch base. Working in mice, Favuzzi et al. found that gene expression programs that define subsets of interneurons also define where on the postsynaptic partner those interneurons prefer to build a synapse. One class of interneurons prefers to synapse onto the cell body of pyramidal neurons, another class onto the dendrites, and yet another onto the axon initial segment. Science , this issue p. 413