The role of neuroligin-1 in regulating presynaptic function and decision-making

Abstract

Synapses are the basic computational units in the brain which higher level information processing depends on. Neuroligins are a family of postsynaptic cell adhesion molecules which bind to presynaptic neurexins to form a trans-synaptic complex. Neuroligin-1 (Nlgn1) is a member of the neuroligin family and has been extensively studied for its role in regulating postsynaptic function. However, whether Nlgn1 also regulates presynaptic function via the neuroligin-neurexin complex and how does its function at the synapse impact behaviour remain underexplored. This thesis aims to shed more light on these two outstanding questions. In Chapter 1, we assessed the impact of constitutive Nlgn1 deletion..