Decreased Rab11 during neuronal development disrupts dendrite growth, affecting synaptic plasticity and memory formation

CONDE C; SIRI SO; ROZÉS SALVADOR V; ARTUR DE LA VILLARMOIS E; GHERSI MS; QUASSOLLO G; PÉREZ MF

Workshop; 5th Edition of the EMBO Workshop, Emerging Concepts of the Neuronal Cytoskeleton; 2019

Emerging evidence shows that Rab11-positive recycling endosomes (REs Rab 11) play a role in several neuronalprocesses and are required for both the proper functioning of the growth cone and regulation of the synapsearchitecture. However, less is known about how the specific positioning of this type of endosomes affects the globalneuronal organization and functionality. Here, we characterize the functional role of REs Rab11 in synaptic plasticityand its correlation in a hippocampal-dependent behavior in adult rats. Endogenous localization of the REs Rab11 atdifferent stages of the neuronal development correlates with a spatial pattern of distribution which changes according tothe neuronal stage of development. In addition, Rab11 suppressed neurons showed a shortening of the main neurite,an increased number of dendritic branches, and a significant misdistribution of dendritic receptors, which were foundnot only in dendrites but also in axons. Adult rats infected with shRab11 in the hippocampal dentate gyrus present adecrease in both the sensitivity to induce long-term potentiation and context-dependent memory acquisition. Takentogether, our results suggest that specific localization of REs Rab11 during the different stages of development seemsto be a requirement, not only for the elongation and branching of dendritic processes at early stages, but also to controlthe key aspects of neuronal development as maturation, maintenance of synaptic plasticity and spatial memoryformation.