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Investigating Mast Cell Secretory Granules; from Biosynthesis to Exocytosis
Published on: January 26, 2015
Ribosomes and secretory granules in human mast cells: close associations demonstrated by staining with a chelating
1Department of Pathology, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center and Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts 02215, USA. advorak@caregroup.harvard.edu
Abstract:
The distribution of ribosomes was investigated in mature human mast cells with a chelation-based staining protocol known to bleach DNA-rich structures, leaving RNA-rich structures unbleached. With this method, electron-dense ribosomes were adjacent to, attached to, and within secretory granules, which were also bleached with the chelation method that we used. The finding of these ribosome-secretory granule relationships suggests that secretory granules in mature human mast cells may participate in RNA metabolism.

