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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...
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...
The Synapse02:47

The Synapse

Neurons communicate with one another by passing on their electrical signals to other neurons. A synapse is the location where two neurons meet to exchange signals. At the synapse, the neuron that sends the signal is called the presynaptic cell, while the neuron that receives the message is called the postsynaptic cell. Note that most neurons can be both presynaptic and postsynaptic, as they both transmit and receive information.
SNAREs and Membrane Fusion01:43

SNAREs and Membrane Fusion

Once a transport vesicle has recognized its target organelle, the vesicular membrane needs to fuse with the target membrane to unload the cargo. Transmembrane proteins called SNAREs present on organelle membranes and their vesicles, mediate vesicle fusion.
SNAREs exist in pairs that symmetrically interact and catalyze the fusion of the lipid bilayers in vesicle and target organelle. v-SNARE in the vesicle membrane are single polypeptide chains that bind to a complementary t-SNARE, composed of 2...
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...

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Related Experiment Video

Updated: Jun 1, 2026

Preparation of Synaptoneurosomes from Mouse Cortex using a Discontinuous Percoll-Sucrose Density Gradient
08:30

Preparation of Synaptoneurosomes from Mouse Cortex using a Discontinuous Percoll-Sucrose Density Gradient

Published on: September 17, 2011

Synaptosomes as a platform for loading nanoparticles into synaptic vesicles.

Kristi L Budzinski1, Allyson E Sgro, Bryant S Fujimoto

  • 1Department of Chemistry, University of Washington, Seattle, WA 98195-1700, USA.

ACS Chemical Neuroscience
|June 14, 2011
PubMed
Summary
This summary is machine-generated.

Researchers loaded quantum dots into isolated nerve terminals (synaptosomes) and then purified the synaptic vesicles. This method allows studying individual vesicles containing single nanoparticles for transporter dynamics research.

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Related Experiment Videos

Last Updated: Jun 1, 2026

Preparation of Synaptoneurosomes from Mouse Cortex using a Discontinuous Percoll-Sucrose Density Gradient
08:30

Preparation of Synaptoneurosomes from Mouse Cortex using a Discontinuous Percoll-Sucrose Density Gradient

Published on: September 17, 2011

Microtransplantation of Synaptic Membranes to Reactivate Human Synaptic Receptors for Functional Studies
10:08

Microtransplantation of Synaptic Membranes to Reactivate Human Synaptic Receptors for Functional Studies

Published on: July 20, 2022

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

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

Published on: June 26, 2018

Area of Science:

  • Neuroscience
  • Nanotechnology
  • Biochemistry

Background:

  • Synaptosomes are isolated nerve terminals capable of synaptic vesicle recycling.
  • Studying individual synaptic vesicles is crucial for understanding neurotransmission.
  • Current methods lack the ability to isolate single, functional synaptic vesicles with encapsulated cargo.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To develop a method for loading single nanoparticles into synaptic vesicles.
  • To enable the study of isolated synaptic vesicles containing nanoparticles.
  • To facilitate the use of nanoparticle-based sensors for investigating vesicular transporter dynamics.

Main Methods:

  • Utilized synaptosomes' natural endocytic and exocytic machinery.
  • Loaded quantum dots (QDs) into synaptic vesicles within synaptosomes.
  • Isolated individual synaptic vesicles post-QD loading.
  • Quantified encapsulation efficiency of single QDs per vesicle.

Main Results:

  • Successfully loaded quantum dots into synaptic vesicles.
  • Achieved an encapsulation efficiency of approximately 16% for single QDs per vesicle.
  • Developed a technique to isolate individual synaptic vesicles containing a single nanoparticle.

Conclusions:

  • This novel technique allows for the creation of individually functionalized synaptic vesicles.
  • The method opens avenues for employing nanoparticle-based sensors to probe vesicular transporter function.
  • Enables advanced studies into the dynamics of synaptic vesicle transport and neurotransmission.