Sejnowski Lab
Principal Investigator: Terrence J Sejnowski
Institution: Salk Institute for Biological Studies (La Jolla, CA)
Primary Subfield: Synthetic Bio
Recruitment Status: ✅ Hiring Postdocs
Research Focus
Fast glutamatergic synaptic transmission is based on a precise and complex molecular organization which requires the control of the number of AMPA-type glutamate receptors (AMPARs) at the postsynaptic sites of glutamatergic synapses on dendritic spines. The number of AMPARs varies as a function of pre- and postsynaptic activation history of the synapse. It is now well described that synapses can change their number of AMPARs and therefore, their response properties through biochemical mechanisms of synaptic plasticity. In this way, information is stored in the brain. The overall goal of this project is to use quantitative models and experiments to answer two fundamental questions about the role of an abundant postsynaptic protein, synGAP, in regulation of the numbers of AMPARs. Numerous experiments in intact neurons have revealed that the level of synGAP expressed at synapses is inversely correlated with the amount of AMPARs available at the synapses, and that synGAP helps to regulate changes in AMPAR numbers during synaptic plasticity. The enzymatic GAP domain of synGAP acts as a ratchet to adjust the rates of addition and removal of AMPARs from the surface of the dendrite. SynGAP…
Active NIH Awards
- 5DP1NS149613-02: Temporal Context in Brains and Transformers (2026)
- 1DP1NS149613-01: Temporal Context in Brains and Transformers (2025)
- 5R01MH129066-04: CRCNS: Regulation of assembly and disassembly of the postsynaptic density during synaptic plasticity and its effect on AMPAR trapping (2024)
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