ER exit sites – Localization and control of COPII vesicle formation

Budnik, Annika; Stephens, David J.

doi:10.1016/j.febslet.2009.10.038

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Volume 583, Issue 23 , Pages 3796-3803, 3 December 2009

ER exit sites – Localization and control of COPII vesicle formation

Edited by Antonella De Matteis

Cell Biology Laboratories, Department of Biochemistry, University of Bristol, School of Medical Sciences, University Walk, Bristol BS8 1TD, United Kingdom

Received 14 July 2009; received in revised form 13 October 2009; accepted 15 October 2009. published online 20 October 2009.

Abstract

The first membrane trafficking step in the biosynthetic secretory pathway, the export of proteins and lipids from the endoplasmic reticulum (ER), is mediated by COPII-coated vesicles. In mammalian cells, COPII vesicle budding occurs at specialized sites on the ER, the so-called transitional ER (tER). Here, we discuss aspects of the formation and maintenance of these sites, the mechanisms by which cargo becomes segregated within them, and the propagation of ER exit sites (ERES) during cell division. All of these features are inherently linked to the formation, maintenance and function of the Golgi apparatus underlining the importance of ERES to Golgi function and more widely in terms of intracellular organization and cellular function.

Abbreviation: ERES, ER exit site

Keywords: Endoplasmic reticulum, Golgi, COPII, Vesicle, Membrane traffic