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Involvement of the Wnt Signal Pathway in Hippocampal Plasticity

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The Wnt signal pathway is a signal mechanism in which the key transmitter molecules are peptides of the Wnt family. This review analyzes data on the involvement of this transmembrane signal cascade (canonical and noncanonical) in structural and synaptic plasticity processes in the hippocampus. The mechanisms of the involvement of the Wnt signal pathway in the normal functioning of neuroplasticity is discussed, as are impairments to these mechanisms underlying cerebral pathologies. Particular attention is paid to what is from the points of view of plasticity and neuropathology one of the most important components of the canonical Wnt pathway – the enzyme glycogen synthase kinase (GSK-3β). Studies in this area have fundamental value as well as significant potential for translation, and the key components of the Wnt pathway are potential targets for the development of pathogenetically based treatments for socially important neurological and mental diseases.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Institute of Higher Nervous Activity and Neurophysiology, Russian Academy of Sciences, 5A Butlerov Street, 117485, Moscow, Russia

    V. A. Markevich, S. V. Salozhin & N. V. Gulyaeva

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  1. V. A. Markevich
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  2. S. V. Salozhin
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  3. N. V. Gulyaeva
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Correspondence to V. A. Markevich.

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Translated from Rossiiskii Fiziologicheskii Zhurnal imeni I. M. Sechenova, Vol. 98, No. 12, pp. 1460–1470, December, 2012.

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Markevich, V.A., Salozhin, S.V. & Gulyaeva, N.V. Involvement of the Wnt Signal Pathway in Hippocampal Plasticity. Neurosci Behav Physi 44, 810–816 (2014). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11055-014-9988-0

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11055-014-9988-0

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