On the other hand, the increased inter-synaptic vesicle distances seemed to be consistent with the increment in the size of VGLUT1-immunopositive puncta in the hippocampus of another Lrrtm1 KO strain ; punctum size may be influenced by the distributional area of the synaptic vesicles. Taken together, both the in vivo and the in vitro results indicate that Lrrtm1 exerts important roles in establishing or maintaining synaptic integrity of the hippocampus. It is interesting that another Lrrtm family, Lrrtm2 , can bind neurexin proteins, which are presynaptic transmembrane proteins involved in presynapse differentiation . Considering the fact that the neurexin binding code is conserved in Lrrtm1 , Lrrtm1 may be involved in presynapse instruction through an interaction with neurexin-like proteins. Schizophrenia is characterized by positive symptoms, negative symptoms, and PB 203580 cognitive dysfunction . The impaired cognitive function of Lrrtm1 KO mice seems to be related to the cognitive dysfunction seen in schizophrenia patients. Furthermore, the increased time spent in the corners of the OF box and the reduction in home-cage activity could be regarded as negativesymptom- related behavioral abnormalities. However, it should also be noted that we did not find any signs suggesting positivesymptom- like Abmole LY294002 abnormalities or sensorimotor gating deficits, which are often reported in mouse models of schizophrenia . The behavioral phenotypes in Lrrtm1 KO mice thus partly resemble the signs of schizophrenia. Morphologically, the reduction of hippocampal volume is analogous to that seen in first-episode schizophrenia patients . In terms of the pathophysiological basis of the behavioral anomalies seen in the KO mice, alteration in NMDA transmission is suggested by the results of the MK-801 treatment experiment. Because specific malfunction of the glutamate receptor is proposed to be a potential pathogenic mechanism in schizophrenia , our results suggest that the involvement of LRRTM1 dysfunction in schizophrenia needs to be considered. On the other hand, the effectiveness of fluoxetine in the recovery from behavioral response deficit in a stressful situation raises the possibility that a panic-like pathological status exists in Lrrtm1 KO mice. Although panic disorder is generally considered to fall in the category of anxiety , the anxiety-like behaviors in Lrrtm1 KO mice were not clear.