Biology of the Endomembrane System

Biology of the Endomembrane System

The endomembrane system divides the cell into functional and structural compartments. These organelles of the endomembrane system include among others: the nuclear membrane, the endoplasmic reticulum, the Golgi apparatus, lysosomes/vacuoles, vesicles, endosomes and the cell membrane.
These membrane compartments are functional and developmental units, exchanging material through vesicle transport.
The plant endomembrane system plays a crucial role in the biosynthesis and storage of  proteins and lipids for human and animal nutrition, and in specialized storage tissues, e.g. of plant seeds, it gives rise to functionally distinct types of storage organelles. The research units at the DAGZ functionally dissect and characterize endomembrane compartments to understand their architecture, morphological dynamics and interactions and to utilize them in biotechnological approaches.