Non-classical membrane trafficking processes galore.

Christelle En Lin Chua1, Yi Shan Lim, Min Goo Lee

  • 1Department of Biochemistry, Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine, National University Health System, National University of Singapore, Singapore, Singapore.

Summary

Cellular transport is more complex than previously thought, involving unconventional secretion pathways and new mechanisms like GRASP and autophagy-dependent (GAD) transport. New research also reveals mitochondria-derived vesicles travel to peroxisomes and lysosomes.

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...
Exocytosis00:51

Exocytosis

Exocytosis is used to release material from cells. Like other bulk transport mechanisms, exocytosis requires energy.
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...
Clathrin Coated Vesicles01:12

Clathrin Coated Vesicles

Clathrin-coated vesicles use endocytosis to transport receptors and lysosomal hydrolases from the Golgi to the lysosome in the late secretory pathway. Clathrin-mediated endocytosis was the first described endocytic process, and Clathrin-coated vesicles remain one of the most well-studied transport vesicles. The molecular machinery that generates clathrin-coated vesicles comprises over 50 proteins that precisely coordinate vesicle formation. Cell surface receptors concentrated in indented sites...
Types of Membrane Protrusions01:28

Types of Membrane Protrusions

The protrusion of the cell surface is an initial step for several cellular processes, including cell migration, phagocytosis, and neurite outgrowth. These membrane protrusions are a result of cytoskeletal rearrangement. The most  widely observed cell protrusions include lamellipodia, pseudopodia, filopodia, microvilli, invadopodia, and podosomes. These protrusions can be of two types — static or dynamic.
The microvilli, an example of stable protrusions, are finger-like projections with a...