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Chromogranins A and B as Regulators of Vesicle Cargo and Exocytosis

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A Commentary to this article was published on 19 November 2010

Abstract

Chromogranins (Cgs) are acidic proteins that have been implicated in several physiological processes such as vesicle sorting, the production of bioactive peptides and the accumulation of soluble species inside large dense core vesicles (LDCV). They constitute the main protein component in the vesicular matrix of LDCV. This latter characteristic of Cgs accounts for the ability of vesicles to concentrate catecholamines and Ca2+. It is likely that Cgs are behind the delay in the neurotransmitter exit towards the extracellular milieu after vesicle fusion, due to their low affinity and high capacity to bind solutes present inside LDCV. The recent availability of mouse strains lacking Cgs, combined with the arrival of several techniques for the direct monitoring of exocytosis, have helped to expand our knowledge about the mechanisms used by granins to concentrate catecholamines and Ca2+ in LDCV, and how they affect the kinetics of exocytosis. We will discuss the roles of Cgs A and B in maintaining the intravesicular environment of secretory vesicles and in exocytosis, bringing together the most recent findings from adrenal chromaffin cells.

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Abbreviations

Cgs:

Chromogranins

CgA:

Chromogranin A

CgB:

Chromogranin B

LDCV:

Large dense core vesicles

SgII:

Secretogranin II

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Acknowledgments

JDM holds a CONSOLIDER contract (CSD2008-00005). ND was the recipient of a FPU fellowship from the Spanish Ministry of Science and Innovation (MICINN). MRP is a recipient of a fellowship from the Canary Islands Agency for Research, Innovation and Information Society (CIARIIS/FEDER). This study was supported by the Spanish Ministry of Science and Innovation (BFU2007-64963) and CONSOLIDER (RB), and CIARIIS/FEDER, PI2007/017 (JDM). We are grateful to the personnel of the animal house of the University of La Laguna for keeping the mouse strains. The authors have no conflicts of interest to declare.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Unit of Pharmacology, Medical School, La Laguna University, 38071, La Laguna, Tenerife, Spain

    José D. Machado, Jésica Díaz-Vera, Natalia Domínguez, Carmen M. Álvarez, Marta R. Pardo & Ricardo Borges

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  1. José D. Machado
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  2. Jésica Díaz-Vera
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Correspondence to José D. Machado.

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A commentary to this article can be found at doi: 10.1007/s10571-010-9552-6.

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Machado, J.D., Díaz-Vera, J., Domínguez, N. et al. Chromogranins A and B as Regulators of Vesicle Cargo and Exocytosis. Cell Mol Neurobiol 30, 1181–1187 (2010). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10571-010-9584-y

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