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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...
Chemical Synapses01:26

Chemical Synapses

Chemical synapses are specialized sites between two neurons or between a neuron and a non-neuronal cell like a muscle, glandular or sensory cell.
Because chemical synapses depend on the release of neurotransmitter molecules from synaptic vesicles to pass on their signal, there is an approximately one millisecond delay between when the axon potential reaches the presynaptic terminal and when the neurotransmitter leads to opening of postsynaptic ion channels. Additionally, this signaling is...
Chemical Synapses01:26

Chemical Synapses

Chemical synapses are specialized sites between two neurons or between a neuron and a non-neuronal cell like a muscle, glandular or sensory cell.
Because chemical synapses depend on the release of neurotransmitter molecules from synaptic vesicles to pass on their signal, there is an approximately one millisecond delay between when the axon potential reaches the presynaptic terminal and when the neurotransmitter leads to opening of postsynaptic ion channels. Additionally, this signaling is...
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...
Synaptic Signaling01:12

Synaptic Signaling

Neurons communicate at synapses, or junctions, to excite or inhibit the activity of other neurons or target cells, such as muscles. Synapses may be chemical or electrical.
Synaptic Signaling01:09

Synaptic Signaling

Neurons communicate at synapses, or junctions, to excite or inhibit the activity of other neurons or target cells, such as muscles. Synapses may be chemical or electrical.
Most synapses are chemical, meaning an electrical impulse or action potential spurs the release of chemical messengers called neurotransmitters. The neuron sending the signal is called the presynaptic neuron, and the neuron receiving the signal is the postsynaptic neuron.
The presynaptic neuron fires an action potential that...

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Related Experiment Video

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An Optical Assay for Synaptic Vesicle Recycling in Cultured Neurons Overexpressing Presynaptic Proteins
09:33

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Published on: June 26, 2018

Large structural change in isolated synaptic vesicles upon loading with neurotransmitter.

Kristi L Budzinski1, Richard W Allen, Bryant S Fujimoto

  • 1Department of Chemistry, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington, USA.

Biophysical Journal
|November 4, 2009
PubMed
Summary

Synaptic vesicles (SVs) dynamically change size. Glutamatergic vesicles expand significantly when filled with glutamate, a process dependent on synaptic vesicle protein 2A (SV2A).

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Last Updated: Jun 19, 2026

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Published on: May 25, 2011

Area of Science:

  • Neuroscience
  • Cell Biology
  • Biochemistry

Background:

  • Synaptic vesicles (SVs) are crucial for neurotransmission.
  • SV size is traditionally considered static after formation.
  • The mechanisms regulating SV size remain incompletely understood.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate the dynamic changes in glutamatergic SV size during neurotransmitter loading.
  • To determine the role of synaptic vesicle protein 2A (SV2A) in SV size regulation.

Main Methods:

  • Fluorescence correlation spectroscopy (FCS) for real-time size analysis.
  • Cryogenic electron microscopy (cryo-EM) for structural visualization.
  • Glutamatergic vesicle loading experiments.

Main Results:

  • Glutamatergic vesicles exhibit a reversible size increase upon glutamate loading.
  • Diameter increases by ~25%, surface area by ~50%, and volume by ~100%.
  • Vesicles lacking SV2A do not show this size change, highlighting SV2A's essential role.

Conclusions:

  • SV size is not constant but dynamically regulated during neurotransmitter uptake.
  • SV2A is a key protein mediating the structural changes associated with glutamate loading.
  • These findings reveal a novel mechanism of SV plasticity impacting synaptic function.