TY - JOUR
T1 - Novel aspects of the molecular mechanisms controlling insulin secretion
AU - Eliasson, Lena
AU - Abdulkader, Fernando
AU - Braun, Matthias
AU - Galvanovskis, Juris
AU - Hoppa, Michael B.
AU - Rorsman, Patrik
PY - 2008
Y1 - 2008
N2 - Pancreatic beta-cells secrete insulin by Ca2+-dependent exocytosis of secretory granules. beta-cell exocytosis involves SNARE (soluble NSF-attachment protein receptor) proteins similar to those controlling neurotransmitter release and depends on the close association of L-type Ca2+ channels and granules. In most cases, the secretory granules fuse individually but there is ultrastructural and biophysical evidence of multivesicular exocytosis. Estimates of the secretory rate in beta-cells in intact islets indicate a release rate of similar to 15 granules per beta-cell per second, 100-fold higher than that observed in biochemical assays. Single-vesicle capacitance measurements reveal that the diameter of the fusion pore connecting the granule lumen with the exterior is similar to 1.4 nm. This is considerably smaller than the size of insulin and membrane fusion is therefore not obligatorily associated with release of the cargo, a feature that may contribute to the different rates of secretion detected by the biochemical and biophysical measurements. However, small molecules like ATP and GABA, which are stored together with insulin in the granules, are small enough to be released via the narrow fusion pore, which accordingly functions as a molecular sieve. We finally consider the possibility that defective fusion pore expansion accounts for the decrease in insulin secretion observed in pathophysiological states including long-term exposure to lipids.
AB - Pancreatic beta-cells secrete insulin by Ca2+-dependent exocytosis of secretory granules. beta-cell exocytosis involves SNARE (soluble NSF-attachment protein receptor) proteins similar to those controlling neurotransmitter release and depends on the close association of L-type Ca2+ channels and granules. In most cases, the secretory granules fuse individually but there is ultrastructural and biophysical evidence of multivesicular exocytosis. Estimates of the secretory rate in beta-cells in intact islets indicate a release rate of similar to 15 granules per beta-cell per second, 100-fold higher than that observed in biochemical assays. Single-vesicle capacitance measurements reveal that the diameter of the fusion pore connecting the granule lumen with the exterior is similar to 1.4 nm. This is considerably smaller than the size of insulin and membrane fusion is therefore not obligatorily associated with release of the cargo, a feature that may contribute to the different rates of secretion detected by the biochemical and biophysical measurements. However, small molecules like ATP and GABA, which are stored together with insulin in the granules, are small enough to be released via the narrow fusion pore, which accordingly functions as a molecular sieve. We finally consider the possibility that defective fusion pore expansion accounts for the decrease in insulin secretion observed in pathophysiological states including long-term exposure to lipids.
U2 - 10.1113/jphysiol.2008.155317
DO - 10.1113/jphysiol.2008.155317
M3 - Review article
C2 - 18511483
SN - 1469-7793
VL - 586
SP - 3313
EP - 3324
JO - Journal of Physiology
JF - Journal of Physiology
IS - 14
ER -