2. Academic Validation
  3. α-Synuclein: A Multifunctional Player in Exocytosis, Endocytosis, and Vesicle Recycling

α-Synuclein: A Multifunctional Player in Exocytosis, Endocytosis, and Vesicle Recycling

  • Front Neurosci. 2019 Jan 28:13:28. doi: 10.3389/fnins.2019.00028.
Mingzhu Huang 1 2,  Bianbian Wang 1 2,  Xiaopeng Li 1 2,  Chongluo Fu 1,  Changhe Wang 2,  Xinjiang Kang 1 3
Affiliations

Affiliations

  • 1 School of Life Sciences, Liaocheng University, Liaocheng, China.
  • 2 Center for Mitochondrial Biology and Medicine, The Key Laboratory of Biomedical Information Engineering of Ministry of Education, School of Life Science and Technology and Frontier Institute of Science and Technology, Xi'an Jiaotong University, Xi'an, China.
  • 3 Key Laboratory of Medical Electrophysiology of Ministry of Education and Medical Electrophysiological Key Laboratory of Sichuan Province, Institute of Cardiovascular Research, Southwest Medical University, Luzhou, China.
PMID: 30745863 DOI: 10.3389/fnins.2019.00028
Abstract

α-synuclein (α-Syn) is a presynaptic enriched protein involved in the pathogenesis of Parkinson's disease. However, the physiological roles of α-Syn remain poorly understood. Recent studies have indicated a critical role of α-Syn in the sensing and generation of membrane curvature during vesicular exocytosis and endocytosis. It has been known to modulate the assembly of SNARE complex during exocytosis including vesicle docking, priming and fusion steps. Growing evidence suggests that α-Syn also plays critical roles in the endocytosis of synaptic vesicles. It also modulates the availability of releasable vesicles by promoting synaptic vesicles clustering. Here, we provide an overview of recent progresses in understanding the function of α-Syn in the regulation of exocytosis, endocytosis, and vesicle recycling under physiological and pathological conditions.

Keywords

Parkinson’s disease; endocytosis; exocytosis; vesicle recycling; α-synuclein.

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