Fusion of membranes during the acrosome reaction: a tale of two SNAREs

AL Kierszenbaum - Molecular Reproduction and Development …, 2000 - Wiley Online Library
AL Kierszenbaum
Molecular Reproduction and Development: Incorporating Gamete Research, 2000Wiley Online Library
During spermiogenesis, hydrolytic enzymes are sorted from the Golgi apparatus to the
acrosome, a supranuclear megavesicle. At fertilization, the enzymatic content of the
acrosome is released by exocytosis when a portion of the plasma membrane enveloping the
sperm head fuses with the outer membrane of the acrosome. Membrane fusion involves the
interaction of a specific pair of proteins, called SNAREs (for soluble N‐ethylmaleimide
sensitive factor attachment protein receptor). v‐SNARE is presumably associated with the …
Abstract
During spermiogenesis, hydrolytic enzymes are sorted from the Golgi apparatus to the acrosome, a supranuclear megavesicle. At fertilization, the enzymatic content of the acrosome is released by exocytosis when a portion of the plasma membrane enveloping the sperm head fuses with the outer membrane of the acrosome. Membrane fusion involves the interaction of a specific pair of proteins, called SNAREs (for soluble N‐ethylmaleimide sensitive factor attachment protein receptor). v‐SNARE is presumably associated with the membrane of the acrosomal vesicle. Target t‐SNARE is associated with the plasma membrane. The interaction of v‐SNARE and t‐SNARE requires two additional proteins: Rab proteins, members of a family of small GTPases related to the Ras proteins, and a complex of two proteins, NSF‐SNAP, recruited by the interacting v‐SNARE‐tSNARE pair. Syntaxin 2, a v‐SNARE member, and Rab3A, a member of the Rab GTPases, have been localized in the acrosome of rodent sperm. Mol. Reprod. Dev. 57:309–310, 2000. © 2000 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
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