Perspectives on golgi apparatus form and function

Abstract

In 1898, Camillio Golgi reported a new cellular constituent with the form of an extensive intracellular network (the apparato reticolare interno), which now bears his name. However, the history of Golgi's apparatus is replete with controversy regarding its reality, what components of the cell should be included under its aegis, and what terminology should be used when referring to it. Electron microscopy has resolved many of these controversies and it is appropriate that this volume emphasize that aspect of Golgi apparatus discovery. The principal structural component of the Golgi apparatus is the stack of cisternae, or dictyosome. As determined both biochemically and at the level of electron microscopy, the dictyosome is a highly ordered and polarized structure. The maintenance of order within the stack is thought to result from either intercisternal bonding constituents, or filamentous structures (or both) that bridge the space between adjacent cisternae. Mechanisms proposed for movement of membrane and product into and out of the dictyosome (i.e., the Golgi apparatus stack) include a serial mode which functions exclusively by the formation, displacement, and loss of cisternae from the stack, and a parallel mode which functions exclusively by the movement of membrane, product, or precursor molecules directly into the peripheral edges of the cisternae. In the parallel mode, all cisternae can be accessed either singly or simultaneously, at least in theory, at any position within the stack. It is probable that both the serial and the parallel modes function concomitantly and need not be mutually exclusive. Finally, the peripheral tubules of the cisternae represent a major membranous constituent of the cell with potentially unique functions. These tubules interconnect cisternae of adjacent stacks and may represent the major site of receptors for the shuttle (i.e., parallel) type of transfer among cisternae. Peripheral tubules as extensions of the cisternal lumina into the cytoplasm presumably have other functions, but these, like the tubules themselves, have only rarely been accommodated into functional models of Golgi apparatus dynamics in secretion or membrane flow.

In situ structural analysis of Golgi intracisternal protein arrays

“…The bundles were always located within the swollen trans-Golgi periphery, with their filaments aligned roughly perpendicular to the membranes of nearby COPI-coated buds. Although the coalescence of cargo proteins at trans-Golgi buds has been previously observed (24,33,43), to the best of our knowledge, the only filamentous structure that has been described in the peripheral trans-Golgi is animal procollagen (44,45).…”

“…Intercisternal linkers have been seen in a variety of cell types, including the alga Scherffelia dubia (19), the roots of maize (31)(32)(33), and rat liver (34). In contrast, to the best of our knowledge, intracisternal linkers have only been previously described in chemically-fixed plastic sections of Clivia and Lilium pollen tubes (35).…”

A Missense Mutation in the <i>NSF</i> Gene Causes Abnormal Golgi Morphology in <i>Arabidopsis thaliana</i>

“…This principal structural future of the Golgi is considered to reflect its function (Mollenhauer and Morré, 1991).…”

Irradiation-induced protein inactivation reveals Golgi enzyme cycling to cell periphery

“…The stacked cisternae reflect the compartmentalization of Golgi enzymes for the processing of transiting cargo (Mellman and Simons, 1992;Puthenveedu and Linstedt, 2005). Cargo movement through the stack has been variously suggested to occur in vesicles, in maturing cisternae, or by tubular connections between cisternae (Malhotra et al, 1989;Mollenhauer and Morre, 1991;Glick et al, 1997;Allan and Balch, 1999;Pelham and Rothman, 2000;Trucco et al, 2004). Although not exclusive of other processes, maturation has gained recent support (Emr et al, 2009).…”