AUTHOR=Kiessling Volker , Liang Binyong , Kreutzberger Alex J. B. , Tamm Lukas K. 

TITLE=Planar Supported Membranes with Mobile SNARE Proteins and Quantitative Fluorescence Microscopy Assays to Study Synaptic Vesicle Fusion

JOURNAL=Frontiers in Molecular Neuroscience

VOLUME=10

YEAR=2017

URL=https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/molecular-neuroscience/articles/10.3389/fnmol.2017.00072

DOI=10.3389/fnmol.2017.00072

ISSN=1662-5099

ABSTRACT=<p>Synaptic vesicle membrane fusion, the process by which neurotransmitter gets released at the presynaptic membrane is mediated by a complex interplay between proteins and lipids. The realization that the lipid bilayer is not just a passive environment where other molecular players like SNARE proteins act, but is itself actively involved in the process, makes the development of biochemical and biophysical assays particularly challenging. We summarize <italic>in vitro</italic> assays that use planar supported membranes and fluorescence microscopy to address some of the open questions regarding the molecular mechanisms of SNARE-mediated membrane fusion. Most of the assays discussed in this mini-review were developed in our lab over the last 15 years. We emphasize the sample requirements that we found are important for the successful application of these methods.</p>