Aggrecan directs extracellular matrix mediated neuronal plasticity.
Brain plasticity, is crucial in learning and memory formation, and insufficient levels of plasticity are a major problem in recovery from brain injury. A key element in regulating brain plasticity has turned out to be a matrix protein structure outside the neurons termed the perineuronal net, which is made up of a meshwork of proteins and sugars that enwraps the surface of certain neurons.
A joint collaboration between researchers from the University of Oslo, Norway, and the University of Cambridge, UK, have shown that a single component of the perineuronal net, the main component of cartilage called aggrecan, is an essential regulator of brain plasticity.
Without aggrecan, the perineuronal nets never form and the brain stays in a high plasticity state throughout life. If aggrecan is removed late in life, the nets disappear and the brain returns to a state of high plasticity similar to that of a young brain in development.
Aggrecan directs extracellular matrix mediated neuronal plasticity. The Journal of Neuroscience.
Daíre Rowlands*, Kristian K. Lensjø*, Tovy Dinh, Melissa R. Andrews, Sujeong S. Yang, Torkel Hafting, Marianne Fyhn, James W. Fawcett, Gunnar Dick (2018). *equal contribution