Clathrin coats partially preassemble and subsequently bend during endocytosis

Mund and Tschanz et al. reveal the three-dimensional shapes of clathrin coats during endocytosis, which partially preassemble and then bend progressively. They further introduce the novel Cooperative Curvature Model, which accurately describes the changes in shapes and dynamics during endocytic clathrin remodeling. Eukaryotic cells use clathrin-mediated endocytosis to take up a large range of extracellular cargo. During endocytosis, a clathrin coat forms on the plasma membrane, but it remains controversial when and how it is remodeled into a spherical vesicle. Here, we use 3D superresolution microscopy to determine the precise geometry of the clathrin coat at large numbers of endocytic sites. Through pseudo-temporal sorting, we determine the average trajectory of clathrin remodeling during endocytosis. We find that clathrin coats assemble first on flat membranes to 50% of the coat area before they become rapidly and continuously bent, and this mechanism is confirmed in three cell lines. We introduce the cooperative curvature model, which is based on positive feedback for curvature generation. It accurately describes the measured shapes and dynamics of the clathrin coat and could represent a general mechanism for clathrin coat remodeling on the plasma membrane.

Automated summary

The study reveals the three-dimensional shapes of clathrin coats during endocytosis and introduces a novel Cooperative Curvature Model that accurately describes the changes in shapes and dynamics. The findings provide insights into the mechanism of clathrin coat remodeling during endocytosis and offer a potential general model for clathrin coat remodeling on the plasma membrane.