Accumulating evidence suggests that glycogen synthase kinase 3 (GSK-3) is a multifunctional kinase implicated in neuronal development, mood stabilization, and neurodegeneration. However, the synaptic actions of GSK-3 are largely unknown. In this study, we examined the impact of GSK-3 on AMPA receptor (AMPAR) channels, the major mediator of excitatory transmission, in cortical neurons. Application of GSK-3 inhibitors or knockdown of GSK-3 caused a significant reduction of the amplitude of miniature excitatory postsynaptic current (mEPSC), a readout of the unitary strength of synaptic AMPARs. Treatment with GSK-3 inhibitors also decreased surface and synaptic GluR1 clusters on dendrites and increased internalized GluR1 in cortical cultures. Rab5, the small GTPase controlling the transport from plasma membrane to early endosomes, was activated by GSK-3 inhibitors. Knockdown of Rab5 prevented GSK-3 inhibitors from regulating mEPSC amplitude. Guanyl nucleotide dissociation inhibitor (GDI), which regulates the cycle of Rab5 between membrane and cytosol, formed an increased complex with Rab5 after treatment with GSK-3 inhibitors. Blocking the function of GDI occluded the effect of GSK-3 inhibitors on mEPSC amplitude. In cells transfected with the non-phosphorylatable GDI mutant, GDI(S45A), GSK-3 inhibitors lost the capability to regulate GDI-Rab5 complex, mEPSC amplitude, and AMPAR surface expression. These results suggest that GSK-3, via altering the GDI-Rab5 complex, regulates Rab5-mediated endocytosis of AMPARs. It provides a potential mechanism underlying the role of GSK-3 in synaptic transmission and plasticity.Glycogen synthase kinase 3 (GSK-3), 3 which was initially identified as an enzyme that regulates glycogen synthesis in response to insulin (1), has emerged as a multifunctional serine/ threonine kinase involved in many cellular processes, including the proliferation, differentiation, cell adhesion, cell survival and apoptotic signaling, axon growth, neuronal polarity, and neural progenitor homeostasis during development (2-6). There are two closely related GSK-3 isoforms, GSK-3␣ and GSK-3, and they are highly enriched in the brain (7). GSK-3 is usually active in resting cells, and its activity can be inhibited by Akt-mediated phosphorylation at N-terminal serine residues (8).GSK-3 has been implicated in mood disorders (9) because it is the main target of lithium (10), the most effective treatment for manic-depressive illness. Convergent evidence also suggests that impaired Akt-GSK-3 signaling contributes to schizophrenia pathogenesis (11). Moreover, inhibition of GSK-3 has been found to reduce the production of -amyloid peptides (12) and the hyperphosphorylation of Tau protein (13), two key events in the etiology of Alzheimer disease. Although pharmacological inhibitors of GSK-3 offer great potential for the treatment of a variety of neurological disorders (14), it is important to know the molecular targets and physiological function of GSK-3 in central neurons.Our previous study has found that the NMDA ...