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Related Concept Videos

Fusion of Secretory Vesicles with the Plasma Membrane01:26

Fusion of Secretory Vesicles with the Plasma Membrane

Proteins and neurotransmitters in secretory vesicles can be released from a cell upon vesicle docking, priming, and fusion with the plasma membrane. Vesicles are docked and primed in preparation for the quick exocytosis of their contents in response to a stimulus. The fusion process is mainly carried out by a SNAP Receptor or SNARE complex, consisting of synaptobrevin, syntaxin-1, and SNAP-25.
In 1993, Jim Rothman proposed that the antiparallel pairing of vesicular and transmembrane SNAREs, or...
Pinching-off of Coated Vesicles01:32

Pinching-off of Coated Vesicles

Vesicle budding is orchestrated by distinct cytosolic proteins such as adaptor proteins, coat proteins, and GTPases. To initiate vesicle budding, membrane-bending proteins containing crescent-shaped BAR domains bind to the lipid heads in the bilayer and distort the membrane to form a protein-coated vesicle bud. Adaptors proteins such as AP2 for clathrin-coated vesicles can nucleate on the deformed membrane. Finally, coat proteins such as clathrin or COPI and COPII assemble into a coat forming...
Vesicular Tubular Clusters01:45

Vesicular Tubular Clusters

After budding out from the ER membrane, some COPII vesicles lose their coat and fuse with one another to form larger vesicles and interconnected tubules called vesicular tubular clusters or VTCs. These clusters constitute a compartment at the ER-Golgi interface known as ERGIC (Endoplasmic Reticulum Golgi Intermediate Compartment). The ERGIC is a mobile membrane-bound cargo transport system that sorts proteins secreted from ER and delivers them to the Golgi.
With the help of motor proteins such...
Exocytosis00:50

Exocytosis

Exocytosis is a process that releases molecules outside the cell. Like other bulk transport mechanisms, exocytosis requires energy.
Exocytosis is the opposite of endocytosis, which brings molecules inside the cell. Sometimes, the released materials are signaling molecules. For example, neurons typically use exocytosis to release neurotransmitters. Cells also use exocytosis to insert proteins such as ion channels into their cell membranes, secrete proteins for use in the extracellular matrix, or...
Exocytosis00:51

Exocytosis

Exocytosis is used to release material from cells. Like other bulk transport mechanisms, exocytosis requires energy.
Overview of Secretory Vesicles01:33

Overview of Secretory Vesicles

Secretory vesicles, also known as dense core vesicles (DCVs), are membrane-bound vesicles that transport secretory proteins, such as hormones or neurotransmitters. Regulated secretory vesicles transport proteins from the trans-Golgi network to the exterior of the cell. Proteins present in regulated secretory vesicles are required to be rapidly exocytosed in large amounts upon a specific stimulus.
Various proteins regulate the aggregation of molecules inside the secretory vesicles. Chromogranins...

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Related Experiment Video

Updated: Jul 5, 2026

Imaging FITC-dextran as a Reporter for Regulated Exocytosis
04:50

Imaging FITC-dextran as a Reporter for Regulated Exocytosis

Published on: June 20, 2018

Vesicle docking in regulated exocytosis.

Matthijs Verhage1, Jakob B Sørensen

  • 1Department of Functional Genomics, Center for Neurogenomics and Cognitive Research, Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, De Boelelaan, Amsterdam, The Netherlands. matthijs.verhage@cncr.vu.nl

Traffic (Copenhagen, Denmark)
|May 1, 2008
PubMed
Summary

Vesicle docking at target membranes is crucial for secretion. This review explores how vesicles tether, dock, and prime, suggesting a linear pathway with exceptions like

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SNARE-mediated Fusion of Single Proteoliposomes with Tethered Supported Bilayers in a Microfluidic Flow Cell Monitored by Polarized TIRF Microscopy
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SNARE-mediated Fusion of Single Proteoliposomes with Tethered Supported Bilayers in a Microfluidic Flow Cell Monitored by Polarized TIRF Microscopy

Published on: August 24, 2016

Automated Detection and Analysis of Exocytosis
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Automated Detection and Analysis of Exocytosis

Published on: September 11, 2021

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Last Updated: Jul 5, 2026

Imaging FITC-dextran as a Reporter for Regulated Exocytosis
04:50

Imaging FITC-dextran as a Reporter for Regulated Exocytosis

Published on: June 20, 2018

SNARE-mediated Fusion of Single Proteoliposomes with Tethered Supported Bilayers in a Microfluidic Flow Cell Monitored by Polarized TIRF Microscopy
10:58

SNARE-mediated Fusion of Single Proteoliposomes with Tethered Supported Bilayers in a Microfluidic Flow Cell Monitored by Polarized TIRF Microscopy

Published on: August 24, 2016

Automated Detection and Analysis of Exocytosis
13:28

Automated Detection and Analysis of Exocytosis

Published on: September 11, 2021

Area of Science:

  • Cell Biology
  • Membrane Trafficking
  • Molecular Neuroscience

Background:

  • Secretory and synaptic vesicles dock at target membranes, a step traditionally viewed as essential for secretion.
  • Recent research questions the necessity of docking for fusion competence and introduces new biophysical and genetic tools to study vesicle tethering, docking, and priming.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To review recent findings on vesicle tethering, docking, and priming.
  • To discuss the relationship between these early steps in the secretory pathway.
  • To evaluate existing models and propose refinements for vesicle-mediated secretion.

Main Methods:

  • Literature review of recent biophysical and genetic studies.
  • Analysis of experimental data on vesicle-membrane interactions.
  • Comparative analysis of different assays for docking, tethering, and priming.

Main Results:

  • Evidence suggests that docking, tethering, and priming are distinct but related processes.
  • The traditional linear docking-priming-fusion pathway is largely supported but requires modifications.
  • Non-functional ('dead-end') docking and accelerated fusion ('crash fusion') are identified as important variations.

Conclusions:

  • The sequential model of vesicle docking, priming, and fusion remains a viable framework.
  • Refinements are needed to account for non-functional docking and rapid fusion events.
  • Further research is required to fully elucidate the mechanisms governing these early steps in regulated secretion.