Spine remodeling and synaptic modification.

The majority of excitatory communication occurs at dendritic spines, and spine modifications accompany synaptic modifications under both physiological and pathological conditions. Although it is increasingly clear that spine remodeling is required for synaptic modification, the exact functions and underlying molecular mechanisms remain unclear. Here, we review recent progress on this topic and discuss the functions of spine remodeling in a broad sense to include both alterations in spine size and actin dynamics. We propose that these two aspects of actin remodeling have distinct contributions to synaptic modification.