Jove
Visualize
Contact Us
JoVE
x logofacebook logolinkedin logoyoutube logo
ABOUT JoVE
OverviewLeadershipBlogJoVE Help Center
AUTHORS
Publishing ProcessEditorial BoardScope & PoliciesPeer ReviewFAQSubmit
LIBRARIANS
TestimonialsSubscriptionsAccessResourcesLibrary Advisory BoardFAQ
RESEARCH
JoVE JournalMethods CollectionsJoVE Encyclopedia of ExperimentsArchive
EDUCATION
JoVE CoreJoVE BusinessJoVE Science EducationJoVE Lab ManualFaculty Resource CenterFaculty Site
Terms & Conditions of Use
Privacy Policy
Policies

Related Experiment Videos

Morphological correlates of functionally defined synaptic vesicle populations.

T Schikorski1, C F Stevens

  • 1Howard Hughes Medical Institute and Molecular Neurobiology Lab, The Salk Institute, 10010 N. Torrey Pines Road, La Jolla, California 92037, USA.

Nature Neuroscience
|March 29, 2001
PubMed
Summary
This summary is machine-generated.

Related Concept Videos

You might also read

Related Articles

Articles linked to this work by shared authors, journal, and citation graph.

Sort by
Same author

Analysis of differential shrinkage in frozen brain sections and its implications for the use of guard zones in stereology.

The Journal of comparative neurology·2011
Same author

A comprehensive analysis of deletions, multiplications, and copy number variations in PARK2.

Neurology·2010
Same author

Comparative analyses of the neuron numbers and volumes of the amygdaloid complex in old and new world primates.

The Journal of comparative neurology·2010
Same author

Letters to the Editor.

Biophysical journal·2009
Same author

Inactivity produces increases in neurotransmitter release and synapse size.

Neuron·2001
Same author

Vitamin A deprivation results in reversible loss of hippocampal long-term synaptic plasticity.

Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America·2001
Same journal

Neural timescales from a computational perspective.

Nature neuroscience·2026
Same journal

Author Correction: Spinal cord Tau pathology induces tactile deficits and cognitive impairment in Alzheimer's disease via dysregulation of CCK neurons.

Nature neuroscience·2026
Same journal

Hippocampal theta sweeps indicate goal direction during navigation.

Nature neuroscience·2026
Same journal

Just how goal-directed are hippocampal theta sweeps, anyway?

Nature neuroscience·2026
Same journal

Goal-directed hippocampal theta sweeps during memory-guided navigation.

Nature neuroscience·2026
Same journal

Connectomic evidence that ordered activity drives neuromuscular network formation.

Nature neuroscience·2026
See all related articles

Synaptic vesicles docked at the active zone are ready for neurotransmitter release. Vesicles actively undergoing endo- and exocytosis are positioned nearer the active zone than reserve vesicles.

Area of Science:

  • Neuroscience
  • Cell Biology
  • Biophysics

Background:

  • Synaptic transmission relies on the precise release of neurotransmitters from vesicles.
  • The functional states and locations of synaptic vesicles within neurons remain incompletely understood.
  • Distinguishing release-ready vesicles from reserve pools is crucial for understanding synaptic function.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate the morphological and positional characteristics of release-ready synaptic vesicles.
  • To determine the relationship between synaptic vesicle pools and their proximity to the active zone.
  • To elucidate the dynamics of synaptic vesicle cycling in hippocampal synapses.

Main Methods:

  • Combined photoconversion of FM1-43 stained vesicles with high-resolution electron microscopy.

Related Experiment Videos

  • Quantitative analysis of synaptic vesicle morphology and localization in hippocampal synapses.
  • Tracking of synaptic vesicle movement during cycles of exocytosis and endocytosis.

    • Main Results:

    • Morphologically docked synaptic vesicles directly correspond to the pool of release-ready neurotransmitter quanta.
    • Synaptic vesicles actively engaged in exocytosis and endocytosis cycles are located closer to the active zone.
    • Reserve synaptic vesicles are found further from the active zone compared to cycling vesicles.

    Conclusions:

    • The study identifies docked synaptic vesicles as the readily releasable pool.
    • Synaptic vesicle positioning is indicative of their functional state (reserve vs. cycling).
    • These findings provide critical insights into the spatial organization and dynamics of synaptic vesicle pools during neurotransmission.