Luke H. Chamberlain

Lipid Rafts and the Regulation of Exocytosis

Exocytosis is the process whereby intracellular fluid‐filled vesicles fuse with the plasma membrane, incorporating vesicle proteins and lipids into the plasma membrane and releasing vesicle contents into the extracellular milieu. Exocytosis can occur constitutively or can be tightly regulated, for example, neurotransmitter release from nerve endings. The last two decades have witnessed the identification of a vast array of proteins and protein complexes essential for exocytosis. SNARE proteins fill the spotlight as probable mediators of membrane fusion, whereas proteins such as munc18/nsec1, NSF and SNAPs function as essential SNARE regulators. A central question that remains unanswered is how exocytic proteins and protein complexes are spatially regulated. Recent studies suggest that lipid rafts, cholesterol and sphingolipid‐rich microdomains, enriched in the plasma membrane, play an essential role in regulated exocytosis pathways. The association of SNAREs with lipid rafts acts to concentrate these proteins at defined sites of the plasma membrane. Furthermore, cholesterol depletion inhibits regulated exocytosis, suggesting that lipid raft domains play a key role in the regulation of exocytosis. This review examines the role of lipid rafts in regulated exocytosis, from a passive role as spatial coordinator of exocytic proteins to a direct role in the membrane fusion reaction.

Palmitoylation-dependent protein sorting

S-palmitoylation is a posttranslational modification that regulates membrane–protein interactions. However, palmitate is more than just a hydrophobic membrane anchor, as many different types of protein are palmitoylated, including transmembrane proteins. Indeed, there is now compelling evidence that palmitoylation plays a key role in regulating various aspects of protein sorting within the cell.

Detergents as tools for the purification and classification of lipid rafts

The relative insolubility of lipid rafts in cold non‐ionic detergents is the most widely used method to purify these fascinating membrane domains from intact cells or membranes. Most of what we know about lipid raft function has been derived from experiments utilising detergent insolubility as the basis for raft purification. Recently, a wider range of detergents have been used to purify ‘rafts’, and rafts have been subclassified based on their differential solubility in different detergents. This minireview critically examines the use of detergents as tools for raft isolation and for the subclassification of rafts.

The Vesicle- and Target-SNARE Proteins That Mediate Glut4 Vesicle Fusion Are Localized in Detergent-insoluble Lipid Rafts Present on Distinct Intracellular Membranes

Insulin stimulates the fusion of intracellular vesicles containing the glucose transporter Glut4 with the plasma membrane in adipocytes and muscle cells. Glut4 vesicle fusion is thought to be catalyzed by the interaction of the vesicle solubleN-ethyl-maleimide-sensitive fusion protein attachment protein receptor VAMP2 with the target solubleN-ethyl-maleimide-sensitive fusion protein attachment protein receptors SNAP-23 and syntaxin 4. Here, we use combined membrane fractionation, detergent solubility, and sucrose gradient flotation to demonstrate that the large majority (>70%) of SNAP-23 and a significant proportion of syntaxin 4 (∼35%) are associated with plasma membrane lipid rafts in 3T3-L1 adipocytes. Furthermore, VAMP2 is shown to be concentrated in lipid rafts isolated from intracellular membranes. Insulin stimulation had no effect on the plasma membrane raft association of SNAP-23 or syntaxin 4 but promoted VAMP2 insertion into plasma membrane rafts. Immunofluorescence analysis revealed that SNAP-23 was clustered at the plasma membrane and almost completely segregated from the transferrin receptor. SNAP-23 distribution seemed to be distinct from caveolin-1, and clusters of SNAP-23 were dispersed after cholesterol extraction with methyl-β-cyclodextrin, suggesting that the majority of SNAP-23 is associated with non-caveolar, cholesterol-rich lipid rafts. The results described implicate lipid rafts as important platforms for Glut4 vesicle fusion and suggest the hypothesis that such rafts may represent a spatial integration point of insulin signaling and membrane traffic.

Inhibition of isoprenoid biosynthesis causes insulin resistance in 3T3-L1 adipocytes

Lovastatin treatment caused down‐regulation of the insulin‐responsive glucose transporter 4 (Glut4) and up‐regulation of Glut1 in 3T3‐L1 adipocytes. These changes in protein expression were associated with a marked inhibition of insulin‐stimulated glucose transport. Lovastatin had no effect on cell cholesterol levels, but its effects were reversed by mevalonate, demonstrating that inhibition of isoprenoid biosynthesis causes insulin resistance in 3T3‐L1 adipocytes. These findings support the notion that whole body insulin resistance may arise as a result of perturbations in general biochemical pathways, rather than primary defects in insulin signalling.

The SNARE proteins SNAP-25 and SNAP-23 display different affinities for lipid rafts in PC12 cells. Regulation by distinct cysteine-rich domains.

SNAP-25 and its ubiquitously expressed homologue, SNAP-23, are SNARE proteins that are essential for regulated exocytosis in diverse cell types. Recent work has shown that SNAP-25 and SNAP-23 are partly localized in sphingolipid/cholesterol-rich lipid raft domains of the plasma membrane and that the integrity of these domains is important for exocytosis. Here, we show that raft localization is mediated by a 36-amino-acid region of SNAP-25 that is also the minimal sequence required for membrane targeting; this domain contains 4 closely spaced cysteine residues that are sites for palmitoylation. Analysis of endogenous levels of SNAP-25 and SNAP-23 present in lipid rafts in PC12 cells revealed that SNAP-23 (54% raft-associated) was almost 3-fold more enriched in rafts when compared with SNAP-25 (20% raft-associated). We report that the increased raft association of SNAP-23 occurs due to the substitution of a highly conserved phenylalanine residue present in SNAP-25 with a cysteine residue. Intriguingly, although the extra cysteine in SNAP-23 enhances its raft association, the phenylalanine at the same position in SNAP-25 acts to repress the raft association of this protein. These different raft-targeting signals within SNAP-25 and SNAP-23 are likely important for fine-tuning the exocytic pathways in which these proteins operate.

Lipid Rafts as Regulators of SNARE Activity and Exocytosis

Lipid rafts, cholesterol and sphingolipid rich microdomains of the plasma membrane, have been implicated in the regulation of several intracellular pathways. Interestingly, components of the SNARE membrane fusion machinery associate with raft domains, and recent work suggests that this interaction may play an important role in regulated exocytosis. Here, we review the relationship between rafts and SNAREs, and discuss how rafts might participate in regulated exocytosis.