Search research articles

ABOUT JoVE

Overview Leadership Blog JoVE Help Center

AUTHORS

Publishing Process Editorial Board Scope & Policies Peer Review FAQ Submit

LIBRARIANS

Testimonials Subscriptions Access Resources Library Advisory Board FAQ

RESEARCH

JoVE Journal Methods Collections JoVE Encyclopedia of Experiments Archive

EDUCATION

JoVE Core JoVE Business JoVE Science Education JoVE Lab Manual Faculty Resource Center Faculty Site

Terms & Conditions of Use

Related Concept Videos

Pinocytosis

Pinocytosis

Cells use energy-requiring bulk transport mechanisms to transfer large particles or large numbers of small particles into or out of the cell. The cells envelop the particles in spherical membranes called vesicles or vacuoles. Vesicles that transport material into the cell are built from the cell membrane. These vesicles encapsulate external molecules and transport them into the cell in a process called endocytosis.
Pinocytosis ("cellular drinking") is one of three main types of...

Pinocytosis

Pinocytosis

Cells use energy-requiring bulk transport mechanisms to transfer large particles, or large amounts of small particles, into or out of the cell. The cells envelop the particles in spherical membranes called vesicles or vacuoles. Vesicles that transport material into the cell are built from the cell membrane. These vesicles encapsulate external molecules and transport them into the cell in a process called endocytosis.

You might also read

Related Articles

Articles linked to this work by shared authors, journal, and citation graph.

Sort by

Same author

Glycosylated Chitosan Inhibits Pancreatic Cancer Metastasis by Blocking the Caveolin Signaling Pathway.

Cancers·2026

Same author

Lipid Nanoparticle Surface Engineering with Heparosan Polysaccharides for Safe and Effective mRNA Delivery <i>In Vitro</i> and <i>In Vivo</i>.

ACS applied materials & interfaces·2026

Same author

Rejuvenation of the Aged Cerebrovascular System via Protein Corona-Guided Fusogenic Liposome Delivery.

bioRxiv : the preprint server for biology·2026

Same author

Correction to "Active Targeting Significantly Outperforms Nanoparticle Size in Facilitating Tumor-Specific Uptake in Orthotopic Pancreatic Cancer".

ACS applied materials & interfaces·2026

Same author

Tumor-immune-neural circuit disrupts energy homeostasis in cancer cachexia.

Cancer cell·2026

Same author

Label-free viability assessment of <i>ex vivo</i> mouse kidneys for transplant applications using dynamic optical coherence tomography.

Biomedical optics express·2026

Search research articles

Related Experiment Video

Updated: Oct 27, 2025

Automated Imaging and Analysis for the Quantification of Fluorescently Labeled Macropinosomes

Automated Imaging and Analysis for the Quantification of Fluorescently Labeled Macropinosomes

Published on: August 24, 2021

Revealing macropinocytosis using nanoparticles.

Nicolas Means¹, Chandra Kumar Elechalawar¹, Wei R Chen²

¹Department of Pathology, The University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center, Oklahoma City, OK, USA.

Molecular Aspects of Medicine

|July 20, 2021

Summary

This summary is machine-generated.

Macropinocytosis, a cellular uptake process, is explored for its role in nanoparticle (NP) delivery. Understanding NP physicochemical properties can reveal new cellular pathways for targeted drug delivery and disease treatment.

Keywords:

Caveolin-mediated endocytosis Clathrin-mediated endocytosis Endocytosis Macropinocytosis Nanoparticle

More Related Videos

Visualizing Membrane Ruffle Formation using Scanning Electron Microscopy

Visualizing Membrane Ruffle Formation using Scanning Electron Microscopy

Published on: May 27, 2021

Measuring the pH, Redox Chemistries, and Degradative Capacity of Macropinosomes using Dual-Fluorophore Ratiometric Microscopy

Measuring the pH, Redox Chemistries, and Degradative Capacity of Macropinosomes using Dual-Fluorophore Ratiometric Microscopy

Published on: August 19, 2021

Related Experiment Videos

Last Updated: Oct 27, 2025

Automated Imaging and Analysis for the Quantification of Fluorescently Labeled Macropinosomes

Automated Imaging and Analysis for the Quantification of Fluorescently Labeled Macropinosomes

Published on: August 24, 2021

Visualizing Membrane Ruffle Formation using Scanning Electron Microscopy

Visualizing Membrane Ruffle Formation using Scanning Electron Microscopy

Published on: May 27, 2021

Measuring the pH, Redox Chemistries, and Degradative Capacity of Macropinosomes using Dual-Fluorophore Ratiometric Microscopy

Measuring the pH, Redox Chemistries, and Degradative Capacity of Macropinosomes using Dual-Fluorophore Ratiometric Microscopy

Published on: August 19, 2021

Area of Science:

Cell biology
Nanotechnology
Pharmacology

Background:

Cells utilize endocytosis for environmental interaction, with macropinocytosis being a significant, less-studied pathway.
Macropinocytosis differs from receptor-mediated endocytosis in material uptake, signaling, and cellular applications.

Purpose of the Study:

To review macropinocytosis as an endocytosis mechanism.
To discuss nanoparticle (NP) uptake via macropinocytosis and other endocytosis pathways.
To explore how NP physicochemical properties influence intracellular uptake and identify regulatory molecules.

Main Methods:

Literature review focusing on macropinocytosis and NP endocytosis.
Analysis of NP physicochemical properties (size, charge, shape, core material) and their impact on cellular uptake.
Discussion of NP-mediated identification of novel endocytosis regulatory molecules.

Main Results:

Macropinocytosis is a distinct endocytic pathway with unique characteristics.
NP surface engineering can target specific endocytosis mechanisms, including macropinocytosis.
Physicochemical properties of NPs are critical determinants of their cellular internalization.

Conclusions:

Macropinocytosis presents a promising avenue for targeted nanoparticle delivery.
Further research into NP-cell interactions can uncover new molecular regulators of endocytosis.
Optimizing NP design based on physicochemical properties can enhance therapeutic applications.