• HOME
  • NEWS
  • EXPLORE
    • CAREER
      • Companies
      • Jobs
    • EVENTS
    • iGEM
      • News
      • Team
    • PHOTOS
    • VIDEO
    • WIKI
  • BLOG
  • COMMUNITY
    • FACEBOOK
    • INSTAGRAM
    • TWITTER
Friday, August 29, 2025
BIOENGINEER.ORG
No Result
View All Result
  • Login
  • HOME
  • NEWS
  • EXPLORE
    • CAREER
      • Companies
      • Jobs
        • Lecturer
        • PhD Studentship
        • Postdoc
        • Research Assistant
    • EVENTS
    • iGEM
      • News
      • Team
    • PHOTOS
    • VIDEO
    • WIKI
  • BLOG
  • COMMUNITY
    • FACEBOOK
    • INSTAGRAM
    • TWITTER
  • HOME
  • NEWS
  • EXPLORE
    • CAREER
      • Companies
      • Jobs
        • Lecturer
        • PhD Studentship
        • Postdoc
        • Research Assistant
    • EVENTS
    • iGEM
      • News
      • Team
    • PHOTOS
    • VIDEO
    • WIKI
  • BLOG
  • COMMUNITY
    • FACEBOOK
    • INSTAGRAM
    • TWITTER
No Result
View All Result
Bioengineer.org
No Result
View All Result
Home NEWS Science News Biology

New chemical tool to block endocytosis in plants identified

Bioengineer by Bioengineer
April 23, 2019
in Biology
Reading Time: 2 mins read
0
Share on FacebookShare on TwitterShare on LinkedinShare on RedditShare on Telegram

Plant cells absorb many important substances through a process called endocytosis. In plants, endocytosis is essential for nutrient uptake, passing on cellular signals and plant-microbe interactions. However, the vital nature of endocytosis makes it challenging to study using methods from classical genetics. Small molecules targeting this process are a good alternative for such studies but in plants, they are lacking. An international collaborative effort of scientists from several VIB Centers, Ghent University and the Free University of Berlin, coordinated by Prof. Jenny Russinova (VIB-UGent Center for Plant Systems Biology) found a new chemical that blocks endocytosis.

How to block endocytosis

Through chemical genetics, scientists previously identified the small molecule ES9 that inhibits endocytosis in plants (Arabidopsis) and fruit flies (Drosophila). Unfortunately, this compound causes the inside of cells to turn acidic. This blocks the process of endocytosis entirely, which is of little use for specific investigations. However, there were clues that ES9 might bind the cellular machinery needed for endocytosis. Now, an international team of scientist led by Prof. Jenny Russinova (VIB-UGent) discovered that ES9 binds to clathrin, a protein that plays a major role in the formation of coated vesicles, small ‘organs’ in cells. Further in vitro binding studies and X-ray crystallography confirmed this interaction.

Helped by the chemistry expertise of Dr. Johan Winne’s team (Ghent University), the ES9 was modified and transformed into a new ES9-17 analog that retained the clathrin-binding ability but no longer acidified the cell’s inside.

International teamwork leads to new discoveries

Prof. Jenny Russinova (VIB-UGent) stresses the collaborative nature of the investigation: “This project brought together scientists with different expertise and backgrounds, such as plant cell biologists, animal cell biologists, chemists, proteomic experts and structural biologists. This study clearly shows that similar cross-disciplinary chemical genetic projects have the potential to greatly boost new discoveries in biology.”

Prof. Jenny Russinova (VIB-UGent) goes on to highlight the importance of their findings: “Identification of ES9-17 presents several new opportunities in the quest to understand clathrin-mediated trafficking in plants. For example, ES9 and ES9-17 offer chemical scaffolds to identify chemical substances that are even more efficient at blocking clathrin function, and, consequently, endocytosis. By doing so, we would increase our understanding of vital processes in plants.”

###

Publication

Disruption of endocytosis through chemical inhibition of clathrin heavy chain function, Dejonghe et al., Nature Chemincal Biology

Financing

Granting bodies that co-funded this research: Research Foundation-Flanders (FWO), European Research Council (ERC), Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft; Agency for Innovation by Science and Technology (IWT), China Science Council (CSC) and Belgian Science Policy Office (BELSPO).

Media Contact
Sooike Stoops
[email protected]

Tags: BiologyBiotechnologyPlant Sciences
Share13Tweet7Share2ShareShareShare1

Related Posts

Uncovering Biosynthetic Secrets of Actinoalloteichus caeruleus

Uncovering Biosynthetic Secrets of Actinoalloteichus caeruleus

August 29, 2025
Decoding the Blueprint of Neuron Formation

Decoding the Blueprint of Neuron Formation

August 28, 2025

New Theoretical Model Illuminates Ovarian Aging, Paving the Way for Breakthroughs in Women’s Health

August 28, 2025

Genetic Insights into Rabbit Intramuscular Fat Development

August 28, 2025
Please login to join discussion

POPULAR NEWS

  • blank

    Breakthrough in Computer Hardware Advances Solves Complex Optimization Challenges

    150 shares
    Share 60 Tweet 38
  • Molecules in Focus: Capturing the Timeless Dance of Particles

    142 shares
    Share 57 Tweet 36
  • New Drug Formulation Transforms Intravenous Treatments into Rapid Injections

    116 shares
    Share 46 Tweet 29
  • Neuropsychiatric Risks Linked to COVID-19 Revealed

    82 shares
    Share 33 Tweet 21

About

We bring you the latest biotechnology news from best research centers and universities around the world. Check our website.

Follow us

Recent News

Mitophagy and Proteasomal Degradation Defend Postnatal Muscle Health

Transplant Policies: Undocumented Immigrants vs. Tourists

Revolutionizing Primary Care with Generative AI Solutions

  • Contact Us

Bioengineer.org © Copyright 2023 All Rights Reserved.

Welcome Back!

Login to your account below

Forgotten Password?

Retrieve your password

Please enter your username or email address to reset your password.

Log In
No Result
View All Result
  • Homepages
    • Home Page 1
    • Home Page 2
  • News
  • National
  • Business
  • Health
  • Lifestyle
  • Science

Bioengineer.org © Copyright 2023 All Rights Reserved.