Background：

The protein encoded by this gene is a critical subunit of N-methyl-D-aspartate receptors， members of the glutamate receptor channel superfamily which are heteromeric protein complexes with multiple subunits arranged to form a ligand-gated ion channel. These subunits play a key role in the plasticity of synapses， which is believed to underlie memory and learning. Cell-specific factors are thought to control expression of different isoforms， possibly contributing to the functional diversity of the subunits. Alternatively spliced transcript variants have been described. [provided by RefSeq， Jul 2008]