During central nervous system development, extracellular matrix (ECM) receptors and their
ligands play key roles as guidance molecules, informing neurons where and when to send
axonal and dendritic projections, establish connections, and form synapses between pre-
and postsynaptic cells. Once stable synapses are formed, many ECM receptors transition in
function to control the maintenance of stable connections between neurons and regulate
synaptic plasticity. These receptors bind to and are activated by ECM ligands. In turn, ECM …