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Related Concept Videos

Introduction to Membrane Traffic01:44

Introduction to Membrane Traffic

The ER, Golgi apparatus, endosomes, and lysosomes work in tandem to modify, sort, and package proteins and lipids. An integrated membrane trafficking network facilitates the back and forth shuttling of molecules within different organelles in the same cell or across the cell membrane.
The transport of soluble and membrane proteins is mediated by transport vesicles that collect cargo from one cellular compartment and deliver it to another by fusing with the target organelle membrane. The Rab...
Introduction to Membrane Traffic01:44

Introduction to Membrane Traffic

The ER, Golgi apparatus, endosomes, and lysosomes work in tandem to modify, sort, and package proteins and lipids. An integrated membrane trafficking network facilitates the back and forth shuttling of molecules within different organelles in the same cell or across the cell membrane.
The transport of soluble and membrane proteins is mediated by transport vesicles that collect cargo from one cellular compartment and deliver it to another by fusing with the target organelle membrane. The Rab...
Role of ER in the Secretory Pathway01:17

Role of ER in the Secretory Pathway

Eukaryotic cells have a special pathway that enables communication between various intracellular membrane-bound compartments and also with the extracellular environment. This pathway is termed as the secretory pathway.
Components of the secretory pathway
About a third of proteins synthesized in the cell are sorted via the secretory route. They shuffle between different compartments in membrane-bound vesicles until they reach their final destination. The main intracellular compartments involved...
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...
ER Retrieval Pathway01:45

ER Retrieval Pathway

In the secretory pathway, vesicles transport proteins from one cellular compartment to another in forward transport to deliver the protein to its correct location. Occasionally, misfolded proteins and incorrect proteins escape their original compartments, and a retrieval pathway is used to return the escaped proteins to their original compartment.
The ER uses many checkpoints to prevent the entry of incorrectly folded or a resident protein as cargo onto a transport vesicle. These mechanisms...
Insertion of Multi-pass Transmembrane Proteins in the RER01:29

Insertion of Multi-pass Transmembrane Proteins in the RER

The rough ER membrane synthesizes, assembles, and embeds transmembrane proteins in diverse topologies. These proteins function as transporters or channels and can remain in the ER membrane or are sent to the Golgi complex, lysosome, and cell membrane.
The multipass transmembrane proteins are the type IV integral membrane proteins with multiple topogenic sequences determining their spatial arrangement in the ER membrane. Nearly all multipass proteins lack a cleavable signal sequence and use...

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Related Experiment Video

Updated: Jul 2, 2026

Image-Based Methods to Study Membrane Trafficking Events in Stomatal Lineage Cells
11:31

Image-Based Methods to Study Membrane Trafficking Events in Stomatal Lineage Cells

Published on: May 12, 2023

Membrane traffic in the secretory pathway.

H-H Gerdes1

  • 1Department of Biomedicine, University of Bergen, Jonas Lies vei 91, Bergen 5009, Norway. hans-hermann.gerdes@biomed.uib.no

Cellular and Molecular Life Sciences : CMLS
|August 30, 2008
PubMed
Summary

Recent advances in membrane traffic reveal how transport vesicles orchestrate cellular communication. Live cell imaging and other methods illuminate the molecular mechanisms of vesicle budding, transport, and fusion in the secretory pathway.

Area of Science:

  • Cell Biology
  • Molecular Biology
  • Biochemistry

Background:

  • Over the past two decades, significant progress has been made in elucidating the molecular underpinnings of membrane traffic within the secretory pathway.
  • Morphological, biochemical, and genetic studies have identified key cellular compartments and transport intermediates, offering fundamental insights into membrane trafficking processes.

Discussion:

  • Live cell imaging techniques have revolutionized the field, providing a dynamic view of vesicle budding, transport, and fusion.
  • These advanced imaging approaches have led to the discovery of novel pathways and have reshaped our understanding of how membrane traffic is coordinated within cells.

Key Insights:

  • Transport vesicles are central mediators of communication within the secretory pathway.
  • The integration of diverse methodologies, from classical genetics to cutting-edge live cell imaging, has been crucial for dissecting complex trafficking events.

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Visualizing Intracellular SNARE Trafficking by Fluorescence Lifetime Imaging Microscopy
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Visualizing Intracellular SNARE Trafficking by Fluorescence Lifetime Imaging Microscopy

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Live-cell Imaging of Endocytic Transport using Functionalized Nanobodies in Cultured Cells
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Live-cell Imaging of Endocytic Transport using Functionalized Nanobodies in Cultured Cells

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Related Experiment Videos

Last Updated: Jul 2, 2026

Image-Based Methods to Study Membrane Trafficking Events in Stomatal Lineage Cells
11:31

Image-Based Methods to Study Membrane Trafficking Events in Stomatal Lineage Cells

Published on: May 12, 2023

Visualizing Intracellular SNARE Trafficking by Fluorescence Lifetime Imaging Microscopy
08:55

Visualizing Intracellular SNARE Trafficking by Fluorescence Lifetime Imaging Microscopy

Published on: December 29, 2017

Live-cell Imaging of Endocytic Transport using Functionalized Nanobodies in Cultured Cells
08:02

Live-cell Imaging of Endocytic Transport using Functionalized Nanobodies in Cultured Cells

Published on: October 17, 2025

  • Understanding vesicle dynamics is key to comprehending cellular organization and function.

    • Outlook:

    • Future research will likely focus on the intricate regulatory networks governing vesicle formation, movement, and content delivery.
    • Exploring the interplay between membrane traffic and other cellular processes, such as signaling and metabolism, remains a critical area.
    • Continued advancements in imaging and analytical techniques promise to uncover even finer details of secretory pathway orchestration.