Kainate receptors, homeostatic gatekeepers of synaptic plasticity

This article is part of a Special Issue entitled: Synaptic plasticity.Extensive research over the past decades has characterized multiple forms of synaptic plasticity, identifying them as key processes that allow the brain to operate in a dynamic manner. Within the wide variety of synaptic plasticity modulators, kainate receptors are receiving increasing attention, given their diversity of signaling mechanisms and cellular expression profile. Here, we summarize the experimental evidence about the involvement of kainate receptor signaling in the regulation of short- and long-term plasticity, from the perspective of the regulation of neurotransmitter release. In light of this evidence, we propose that kainate receptors may be considered homeostatic modulators of neurotransmitter release, able to bidirectionally regulate plasticity depending on the functional history of the synapse.The authors gratefully acknowledge the financial support received from the Spanish Agency of Research (AEI) under the grant BFU2015-64656-R (to J.L.), co-financed by the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF), the “Severo Ochoa” Program for Centres of Excellence in R&D (SEV-2013-0317 and SEV-2017-0723) and the FPI fellowship program (to S.V.) and from the Generalitat Valenciana through the program PrometeoII/2015/012 and Prometeo/2019/014 (to J.L.).Peer reviewe