What is it about?
The work studies the endocytic pathway followed by nicotinic receptors in a mammalian cell line using epifluorescence and TIRF microscopy. Use is made of mutant proteins involved in endocytosis to dissect the mechanism involved.
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Why is it important?
The number of receptors at the cell surface is a key factor in determining synaptic strength. Edocytosis sequesters receptors and thus diminishes the availability of receptors at the postsynatic sites. Understanding the mechanisms is important in ccomprehending function and dysfunction of the synapse.
Perspectives
Subsequent work (Borroni & Barrantes, J. Biol. Chem. (2011)) explored the modification of the endocytic mechanism upon cholesterol depletion, and associated changes in the 2D-translational dynamics of cell-surface receptors (Almarza, Sánchez & Barrantes, PLOS 1 (2014)).
Prof. Dr. Francisco J Barrantes
Lab. Molec. Neurobiology, BIOMED, UCA-CONICET
Read the Original
This page is a summary of: Nicotinic acetylcholine receptor is internalized via a Rac-dependent, dynamin-independent endocytic pathway, Journal of Cell Biology, June 2008, Rockefeller University Press,
DOI: 10.1083/jcb.200709086.
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