Abstract
The fusion of the limiting membrane of a secretory granule with the plasmalemma during exocytosis is equivalent to the fusion and release of contents that occurs when phospholipid vesicles fuse with planar bilayers1,2. Experiments with bilayers demonstrate that phospholipid vesicles must swell if they are to fuse3. Also, inhibition of exocytosis in solutions of high osmolarity occurs in several types of secretory cell4ā8. We report here experiments on the cortical granule exocytosis of sea-urchin eggs. Exocytosis is prevented when the osmolality of the medium surrounding the eggs is raised from 1 to 2 osmol kgā1. High osmolality also prevents calcium-dependent exocytosis in vitro. Prior treatment with calcium at high osmolality triggers fusion when normal osmolality is restored, even if calcium is removed before dilution. Addition of calcium causes the cortical granules to swell. The large increase in membrane capacitance which normally accompanies fusion9 is absent in eggs activated in solutions of high osmolarity. Our data are consistent with the idea that a secretory granule must swell to fuse with the plasma membrane and support the hypothesis2,10 of an osmotically driven fusion step during exocytosis.
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Zimmerberg, J., Whitaker, M. Irreversible swelling of secretory granules during exocytosis caused by calcium. Nature 315, 581ā584 (1985). https://doi.org/10.1038/315581a0
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/315581a0
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