Investigations into the mechanisms which regulate entry of integral membrane proteins, and associated ligands, into the cell through vesicular carriers (endocytosis) have greatly benefited from the application of live-cell imaging. Several excellent recent reviews have detailed specific aspects of endocytosis, such as entry of particular cargo, or the different routes of internalization. The aim of the present review is to highlight how advances in live-cell fluorescence microscopy have affected the study of clathrin-mediated endocytosis. The last decade has seen a tremendous increase in the development and dissemination of methods for imaging endocytosis in live cells, and this has been followed by a dramatic shift in the way this critical cellular pathway is studied and understood. The present review begins with a description of the technical advances which have permitted new types of experiment to be performed, as well as potential pitfalls of these new technologies. Subsequently, advances in the understanding of three key endocytic proteins will be addressed: clathrin, dynamin and AP-2 (adaptor protein 2). Although great strides have clearly been made in these areas in recent years, as is often the case, each answer has bred numerous questions. Furthermore, several examples are highlighted where, because of seemingly minor differences in experimental systems, what appear at first to be very similar studies have, at times, yielded vastly differing results and conclusions. Thus this is an exceedingly exciting time to study endocytosis, and this area serves as a clear demonstration of the power of applying live-cell imaging to answer fundamental biological questions.
Skip Nav Destination
Article navigation
June 2008
-
Cover Image
Cover Image
- PDF Icon PDF LinkFront Matter
- PDF Icon PDF LinkTable of Contents
- PDF Icon PDF LinkEditorial Board
Review Article|
May 28 2008
Focusing on clathrin-mediated endocytosis
Joshua Z. Rappoport
Joshua Z. Rappoport
1
1School of Biosciences, University of Birmingham, Edgbaston, Birmingham B15 2TT, U.K.
1email j.rappoport@bham.ac.uk
Search for other works by this author on:
Publisher: Portland Press Ltd
Received:
February 28 2008
Revision Received:
March 20 2008
Accepted:
March 27 2008
Online ISSN: 1470-8728
Print ISSN: 0264-6021
© The Authors Journal compilation © 2008 Biochemical Society
2008
Biochem J (2008) 412 (3): 415–423.
Article history
Received:
February 28 2008
Revision Received:
March 20 2008
Accepted:
March 27 2008
Citation
Joshua Z. Rappoport; Focusing on clathrin-mediated endocytosis. Biochem J 15 June 2008; 412 (3): 415–423. doi: https://doi.org/10.1042/BJ20080474
Download citation file:
Sign in
Don't already have an account? Register
Sign in to your personal account
You could not be signed in. Please check your email address / username and password and try again.
Captcha Validation Error. Please try again.