Extracellular matrix (ECM) proteins are biosynthesized in the rough endoplasmic reticulum (rER) and transported via the Golgi apparatus to the extracellular space. The coat protein complex II (COPII) transport vesicles are approximately 60-90 nm in diameter. However, several ECM molecules are much larger, up to several hundreds of nanometers. Therefore, special COPII vesicles are required to coat and transport these molecules. Transmembrane Protein Transport and Golgi Organization 1 (TANGO1) facilitates loading of collagens into special vesicles. The Src homology 3 (SH3) domain of TANGO1 was proposed to recognize collagen molecules, but how the SH3 domain recognizes various types of collagen is not understood. Moreover, how are large noncollagenous ECM molecules transported from the rER to the Golgi? Here we identify heat shock protein (Hsp) 47 as a guide molecule directing collagens to special vesicles by interacting with the SH3 domain of TANGO1. We also consider whether the collagen secretory model applies to other large ECM molecules.E xtracellular matrix (ECM) proteins are the most abundant proteins in our body. They build the body architecture and help to maintain tissue homeostasis in bone, skin, cartilage, and tendon (1). They are biosynthesized in the rough endoplasmic reticulum (ER; rER) and traverse the Golgi apparatus en route to the extracellular space. A transport vesicle for cargo exists to traffic molecules from the rER into the extracellular space. This secretory vesicle is called a coat protein complex II (COPII) vesicle (2-4). It is generated at the ER exit site and usually has a diameter of 60-90 nm. This carrier can transport many secreted proteins. However, larger or elongated molecules, especially collagens and other ECM molecules, will not fit into such small vesicles.There are more than 20 different collagen types in humans (5, 6). Type I, II, III, and V collagens are classified as fibrillar collagens, which are the most abundant. Type IV collagen is an important structural element in basement membranes. Type VII collagen forms anchoring fibrils at the epidermal-dermal junction in skin. These collagens are all more than 300 nm long. In addition to its elongated triple helical structure, type VII collagen has a 140-kDa noncollagenous domain at the amino terminus. Although more flexible than collagens, fibrillin molecules are also elongated, measured to be approximately 150 nm in length (7). For these molecules, special COPII vesicles or other trafficking systems are required for secretion.It has been proposed that procollagen molecules, which are the precursors of collagen, are transferred in COPII vesicles to the Golgi (8-10). In 2009, Transmembrane Protein Transport and Golgi Organization 1 (TANGO1), encoded by MIA3, was shown to facilitate collagens into COPII vesicles at the ER exit site (11). In the cytoplasm, TANGO1 interacts with Sec23A/Sec24C, the outer molecules of COPII vesicles, and cTAGE5, a homolog of TANGO1 that lacks the rER domains of TANGO. These interactions occur via a ...