Multivesicular Body Fusion
Multivesicular Body Fusion - Related Videos
01:38
Intralumenal Vesicles and Multivesicular Bodies
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2023
Intraluminal vesicles (ILVs) are small vesicles 50-80 nm in diameter formed during the maturation of early endosomes. A specialized endosome containing numerous ILVs is called a multivesicular body (MVB). ILVs contain internalized molecules such as antigens, nucleic acids, proteins, and metabolites. Some of these molecules are released from the MVBs inside exosomes and are transported to other cells. Other MVBs contain molecules that are retained in the ILVs and are later degraded within the...
02:45
Nuclear Fusion
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2020
The process of converting very light nuclei into heavier nuclei is also accompanied by the conversion of mass into large amounts of energy, a process called fusion. The principal source of energy in the sun is a net fusion reaction in which four hydrogen nuclei fuse and ultimately produce one helium nucleus and two positrons. A helium nucleus has a mass that is 0.7% less than that of four hydrogen nuclei; this lost mass is converted into energy during the fusion. This reaction produces about...
09:19
Analysis of SNARE-mediated Membrane Fusion Using an Enzymatic Cell Fusion Assay
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2012
We have developed a cell fusion assay that quantifies SNARE-mediated membrane fusion events by activated expression of β-galactosidase.
06:10
Live Imaging of Mouse Secondary Palate Fusion
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Cited by 11 •
2017
Here, we present a protocol for live imaging of mouse secondary palate fusion using confocal microscopy. This protocol can be used in combination with a variety of fluorescent reporter mouse lines, and with pathway inhibitors for mechanistic insight. This protocol can be adapted for live imaging in other developmental systems.
04:58
Method of Studying Palatal Fusion using Static Organ Culture
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Cited by 6 •
2015
Studies of palate development are motivated by the incidence of cleft palate, a birth defect that imposes a tremendous health burden and can leave lasting disfigurement. We demonstrate here a technique to culture palatal shelves that can be used to study different signaling pathways involved in palatal development and fusion.
FAQs
Rab GTPases help position multivesicular bodies, bringing them to the cellular location where they can act, while SNARE proteins drive the membrane-merging step. This division of labor connects organelle positioning with fusion execution. In neurons, coordinated activity of these protein systems helps determine whether multivesicular body contents participate in extracellular signaling or proceed toward intracellular degradation.
These routes produce different biological outcomes from multivesicular body trafficking. Delivery to lysosomes supports degradation of the compartment’s contents, whereas release at the plasma membrane allows proteins, lipids, and nucleic acids to leave the cell within extracellular vesicles. Comparing the routes helps researchers distinguish mechanisms of cellular clearance from mechanisms of communication between neural cells.
Calcium can modulate vesicle release when multivesicular bodies fuse with the plasma membrane. This places calcium-dependent regulation at a point where intracellular cargo becomes extracellular and available for signaling between cells. In neuroscience experiments, examining calcium conditions can therefore help clarify how neural activity or other regulatory signals influence the timing or extent of extracellular vesicle release.
The released vesicles can carry proteins, lipids, and nucleic acids. Because these cargo classes have different molecular properties, their transfer can provide several forms of information between neural cells rather than a single signal type. Studying cargo distribution helps investigators connect multivesicular body trafficking with changes in cell signaling, including communication relevant to neural development and synaptic function.
This pathway provides a framework for examining how neural cells package and distribute molecular cargo outside the cell. Its relevance to synaptic communication comes from the regulated release of extracellular vesicles and their contents, while its relevance to neurodevelopment comes from the broader role of intercellular cargo transfer. The resulting observations can link trafficking events with neural-cell signaling.
Changes in extracellular vesicle trafficking may modify how proteins, lipids, or nucleic acids move between neural cells. That altered distribution could influence cell signaling and disease progression, making the pathway relevant to neurodegenerative disease studies. Researchers can therefore use this system to investigate whether abnormal vesicle release or cargo transfer accompanies, contributes to, or reflects disease-related cellular changes.