Lipids, lipid modification and lipid-protein interaction in membrane budding and fission - insights from the roles of endophilin A1 and synaptophysin in synaptic vesicle endocytosis

Studies on the endocytosis of synaptic vesicles have provided two novel insights into the mechanism of vesicle formation from donor membranes, both of which concern lipids. One is the essential role of endophilin, a cytosolic protein converting lysophosphatidic acid by addition of the fatty acid arachidonate into phosphatidic acid. The other is the essential role of membrane cholesterol, which specifically interacts with synaptophysin, the major transmembrane protein of synaptic vesicles. These findings reveal novel modes of membrane lipid modification and lipid-protein interaction in vesicle biogenesis.