<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?><?xml-stylesheet type="text/xsl" href="static/style.xsl"?><OAI-PMH xmlns="http://www.openarchives.org/OAI/2.0/" xmlns:xsi="http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema-instance" xsi:schemaLocation="http://www.openarchives.org/OAI/2.0/ http://www.openarchives.org/OAI/2.0/OAI-PMH.xsd"><responseDate>2026-09-24T06:46:19Z</responseDate><request verb="GetRecord" identifier="oai:www.repository.cam.ac.uk:1810/346464" metadataPrefix="uketd_dc">https://api.repository.cam.ac.uk/server/oai/request</request><GetRecord><record><header><identifier>oai:www.repository.cam.ac.uk:1810/346464</identifier><datestamp>2023-12-22T14:23:19Z</datestamp><setSpec>com_1810_263984</setSpec><setSpec>com_1810_221767</setSpec><setSpec>com_1810_256067</setSpec><setSpec>col_1810_263986</setSpec></header><metadata><uketd_dc:uketddc xmlns:uketd_dc="http://naca.central.cranfield.ac.uk/ethos-oai/2.0/" xmlns:dc="http://purl.org/dc/elements/1.1/" xmlns:dcterms="http://purl.org/dc/terms/" xmlns:uketdterms="http://naca.central.cranfield.ac.uk/ethos-oai/terms/" xmlns:xsi="http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema-instance" xmlns:doc="http://www.lyncode.com/xoai" xsi:schemaLocation="http://naca.central.cranfield.ac.uk/ethos-oai/2.0/ http://naca.central.cranfield.ac.uk/ethos-oai/2.0/uketd_dc.xsd">
   <dc:title>Characterising the factors involved in ER-to-Golgi anterograde trafficking</dc:title>
   <dc:identifier xsi:type="dcterms:DOI">10.17863/CAM.93885</dc:identifier>
   <dc:creator>Yakunin, Igor</dc:creator>
   <uketdterms:advisor>Munro, Sean</uketdterms:advisor>
   <dcterms:abstract>The Golgi apparatus is a major hub of protein transport, modification and sorting.
Secreted and membrane proteins are synthesised in the Endoplasmic Reticulum (ER) and
are packaged into carrier vesicles at ER exit sites. The carriers are transported to the
cis-Golgi apparatus, where they fuse with the Golgi membrane and release cargo into the
Golgi apparatus for further processing. Vesicle recognition at the Golgi apparatus occurs
in two steps: long-range recognition via tethering and short-range fusion. The focus of my
PhD revolved around the organisation of ER-to-Golgi traffic with a focus on the mechanisms
underlying tethering of ER-to-Golgi carriers and the role of tethering in trafficking. Previous
work had shown that two long coiled-coil proteins, GMAP210 and GM130, are able to
capture vesicles arriving from the ER. The mechanism by which these two proteins recognise
other membranes is unclear.
To study the role of GM130, I generated a stable GM130 knockout cell line using CRISPRCas9
gene editing, and observed a striking disruption in ER exit site morphology. The
Golgi-apposed ER exit sites (which I term central ER exit sites), were completely dispersed,
with only peripheral ER exit sites remaining. This phenotype was also recreated when p115,
a GM130 binding partner of unclear function, was knocked down using siRNA. The ER exit
site dispersal phenotype was unique to GM130, as the loss of GMAP210 and giantin did not
produce a similar effect. Therefore, GM130 possesses a unique role among the cis-Golgi
coiled-coil proteins of organising ER exit sites. I next determined which regions of GM130 are necessary for ER exit site localisation. I have discovered a novel Rab2 binding site
at the C terminus of GM130, that can direct GM130 to the Golgi apparatus in addition
to its canonical GRASP65-mediated localisation mechanism. I have also identified the
154-447 region of GM130 as contributing to ER exit site localisation, possibly through the
recruitment of the Ste20 kinases. Having shown that loss of p115 produces the same ER
exit site phenotype as loss of GM130, I looked for novel binding partners of p115. This
revealed an interaction between p115 and Sec16A, an ER exit site protein. I then mapped
the parts of Sec16A and p115 required for their interaction. This allowed me to generate
mutants of both Sec16A and p115 that no longer bound to each other, and I proved that
the interaction is direct using an in-vitro direct binding assay. I next investigated the role
of Sec16A, p115 and GM130 in trafficking. Using a lentiviral CRISPR method, I was able
to generate transient knockouts of these 3 proteins. Loss of all three proteins resulted in a
marked disruption to ER exit site organisation. I then used the Retention Using Streptavidin
Hooks (RUSH) assay to look at the effect of the loss of these proteins on cargo trafficking.
While the effect of GM130 was moderate, the loss of p115 and Sec16A produced a complete
block to anterograde trafficking. I was then able to investigate the importance of different
protein-protein interactions for anterograde trafficking. Using different mutants of p115, I
showed that the loss of binding between p115 and GM130 or Sec16A has the same effect,
with the double mutant having no additional effect.
In summary, I have identified and characterised a novel direct protein-protein connection
between ER exit sites and the Golgi apparatus, and shown that this connection has a role in
anterograde trafficking.</dcterms:abstract>
   <uketdterms:institution>University of Cambridge</uketdterms:institution>
   <dcterms:issued>2022-09-01</dcterms:issued>
   <dc:type>Thesis</dc:type>
   <uketdterms:qualificationlevel>Doctoral</uketdterms:qualificationlevel>
   <uketdterms:qualificationname>Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)</uketdterms:qualificationname>
   <dc:language>eng</dc:language>
   <dcterms:isReferencedBy xsi:type="dcterms:URI">https://www.repository.cam.ac.uk/handle/1810/346464</dcterms:isReferencedBy>
   <dc:identifier xsi:type="dcterms:URI">https://apollo8-f-pro.lib.cam.ac.uk/bitstreams/31ae3d15-c38b-46a0-a756-53a4bc74a325/download</dc:identifier>
   <uketdterms:checksum xsi:type="uketdterms:MD5">72ab9ab666d9e47447571738ef02a102</uketdterms:checksum>
   <dc:rights>https://www.rioxx.net/licenses/all-rights-reserved/</dc:rights>
   <dc:subject>Golgi apparatus</dc:subject>
   <dc:subject>Endoplasmic Reticulum</dc:subject>
   <dc:subject>Protein trafficking</dc:subject>
   <dc:subject>GM130</dc:subject>
   <dc:subject>p115/USO1</dc:subject>
   <dc:subject>Sec16A</dc:subject>
</uketd_dc:uketddc>
</metadata></record></GetRecord></OAI-PMH>