Phagocytosis: The effects of time and Latrunculin on endocytosis.
Introduction
Phagocytosis is a process in which cells engulfed foreign materials. Eukaryotic cells can engulf different particles and solutes from their environment using a variety of mechanisms called endocytosis. Some cells can carry out large endocytic processes called phagocytosis and micropinocytosis. These processes can internalize particles (>0.5um) whereas internalization of fluids through micropinocytosis mechanisms or solute into vesicles for size less than (<0.5) Phagocytosis is a ubiquitous process throughout nature. The behavior can be observed in unicellular organisms like amoeba using phagocytosis to obtain nutrients. Similarly, for vertebrates phagocytosis is an efficient method used by phagocytic cells such as macrophages, dendritic cells, and neutrophils to uptake, eliminate pathogens and cellular debris from the body. Understanding phagocytosis depends on several steps involving interaction between phagocyte surface receptors with ligands on the surface of particles and cytoskeletal rearrangement (polymerization of actin) for the formation of an early endosome into a phagosome. …show more content…
It has been shown that latrunculin A affects the polymerization of pure actin in vitro with the formation of a 1:1 molar complex between latrunculin A and G-actin (Coue, Brenner 1987). Latrunculin A is used extensively as an agent to remove monomeric actin in living cells. More research can be tailored to understand more about the processes by which compounds affect phagocytosis. Because of the link of latrunculin A can act as a disrupting agent of microfilament organization, these results strengthen the evidence for the active participation of microfilaments in the mechanism of phagocytosis and at the same time provide a new tool for the investigation of phagocytosis at the molecular level (Oliveira & Bernando,
Introduction
Phagocytosis is a process in which cells engulfed foreign materials. Eukaryotic cells can engulf different particles and solutes from their environment using a variety of mechanisms called endocytosis. Some cells can carry out large endocytic processes called phagocytosis and micropinocytosis. These processes can internalize particles (>0.5um) whereas internalization of fluids through micropinocytosis mechanisms or solute into vesicles for size less than (<0.5) Phagocytosis is a ubiquitous process throughout nature. The behavior can be observed in unicellular organisms like amoeba using phagocytosis to obtain nutrients. Similarly, for vertebrates phagocytosis is an efficient method used by phagocytic cells such as macrophages, dendritic cells, and neutrophils to uptake, eliminate pathogens and cellular debris from the body. Understanding phagocytosis depends on several steps involving interaction between phagocyte surface receptors with ligands on the surface of particles and cytoskeletal rearrangement (polymerization of actin) for the formation of an early endosome into a phagosome. …show more content…
It has been shown that latrunculin A affects the polymerization of pure actin in vitro with the formation of a 1:1 molar complex between latrunculin A and G-actin (Coue, Brenner 1987). Latrunculin A is used extensively as an agent to remove monomeric actin in living cells. More research can be tailored to understand more about the processes by which compounds affect phagocytosis. Because of the link of latrunculin A can act as a disrupting agent of microfilament organization, these results strengthen the evidence for the active participation of microfilaments in the mechanism of phagocytosis and at the same time provide a new tool for the investigation of phagocytosis at the molecular level (Oliveira & Bernando,