Skip to main content

Thank you for visiting nature.com. You are using a browser version with limited support for CSS. To obtain the best experience, we recommend you use a more up to date browser (or turn off compatibility mode in Internet Explorer). In the meantime, to ensure continued support, we are displaying the site without styles and JavaScript.

  • News & Views
  • Published:

Neuroscience

Activity acts locally

Nature volume 460, pages 961–963 (2009)Cite this article

How does neuronal activity affect the development of neural circuits? Work on the retina shows that blocking activity at the synapses between neurons reduces local synapse assembly without affecting global cellular structure.

This is a preview of subscription content, access via your institution

Access options

Buy this article

  • Purchase on Springer Link
  • Instant access to full article PDF
Buy now

Prices may be subject to local taxes which are calculated during checkout

Figure 1: Blocking synaptic activity in the retina has local effects.

References

  1. Cline, H. & Haas, K. J. Physiol. (Lond.) 586, 1509–1517 (2008).

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  2. Tian, N. J. Physiol. (Lond.) 586, 4347–4355 (2008).

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  3. Kerschensteiner, D. et al. Nature 460, 1016–1020 (2009).

    Article  CAS  ADS  Google Scholar 

  4. Wässle, H. Nature Rev. Neurosci. 5, 747–757 (2004).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  5. Schiavo, G. et al. Nature 359, 832–835 (1992).

    Article  CAS  ADS  Google Scholar 

  6. Bodnarenko, S. R. & Chalupa, L. M. Nature 364, 144–146 (1993).

    Article  CAS  ADS  Google Scholar 

  7. Blankenship, A. G. et al. Neuron 62, 230–241 (2009).

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  8. Nevin, L. M., Taylor, M. R. & Baier, H. Neural Dev. 3, 36 (2008).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  9. Sanes, J. R. & Yamagata, M. Annu. Rev. Cell Dev. Biol. doi:10.1146/annurev.cellbio.24.110707.175402 (2009).

  10. Sanes, J. R. & Lichtman, J. W. Annu. Rev. Neurosci. 22, 389–442 (1999).

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  11. Bosman, L. W. & Konnerth, A. Neuroscience 162, 612–623 (2009).

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Jonathan B. Demb is in the Department of Ophthalmology and Visual Sciences, and the Department of Molecular, Cellular and Developmental Biology, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan 48105, USA. jdemb@umich.edu,

    Jonathan B. Demb

  2. Marla B. Feller is in the Department of Molecular and Cell Biology, and the Helen Wills Neuroscience Institute, University of California, Berkeley, California 94720, USA. mfeller@berkeley.edu,

    Marla B. Feller

Authors
  1. Jonathan B. Demb
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Marla B. Feller
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Cite this article

Demb, J., Feller, M. Activity acts locally. Nature 460, 961–963 (2009). https://doi.org/10.1038/460961a

Download citation

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/460961a

Search

Advanced search

Quick links

Nature Briefing

Sign up for the Nature Briefing newsletter — what matters in science, free to your inbox daily.

Get the most important science stories of the day, free in your inbox. Sign up for Nature Briefing