Microtubule structures underlying the sarcoplasmic reticulum support peripheral coupling sites to regulate smooth muscle contractility.

ABSTRACT: Junctional membrane complexes facilitate excitation-contraction coupling in skeletal and cardiac muscle cells by forming subcellular invaginations that maintain close (≤20 nm) proximity of ryanodine receptors (RyRs) on the sarcoplasmic reticulum (SR) with voltage-dependent Ca2+ channels in the plasma membrane. In fully differentiated smooth muscle cells, junctional membrane complexes occur as distributed sites of peripheral coupling. We investigated the role of the cytoskeleton in maintaining peripheral coupling and associated Ca2+ signaling networks within native smooth muscle cells of mouse and rat cerebral arteries. Using live-cell confocal and superresolution microscopy, we found that the tight interactions between the SR and the plasma membrane in these cells relied on arching microtu

SUBMITTER: Pritchard HAT 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC6328376 | biostudies-literature | 2017 Sep

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature