Regensburg 2013 – scientific programme

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BP: Fachverband Biologische Physik

BP 10: Posters: Imaging

BP 10.3: Poster

Monday, March 11, 2013, 17:30–19:30, Poster B2

On the role of Sec16 in the self-organization of exit sites in the endoplasmic reticulum — •Julia Hoffmann and Matthias Weiss — Experimental Physics I, University of Bayreuth, Germany

The endoplasmic reticulum (ER) is the first station of newly synthesized proteins in eukaryotic cells. The export of properly folded proteins occurs almost exclusively at specialized membrane domains, so-called ER exit sites (ERES). Protein export at ERES but also the self-organization of ERES themselves are still poorly understood. Sec16 is a large peripheral protein that plays an important role in both processes. However, its precise function has remained elusive so far. Here we present an investigation of Sec16 dynamics in vivo by means of quantitative fluorescence microscopy techniques. As a result, we have found that Sec16 rapidly cycles between an ER-bound and a cytoplasmic state (ratio about 1:1) while being mobile in both states. Moreover, our data indicate a role of Sec16 as a metastable platform for the self-assembly of ERES.