Vesicle Tethers

Tethering factors are proteins or protein complexes that provide an initial linkage between a vesicle and its target membrane. There are two broad classes of tethers: coiled-coil tethers and multisubunit tethering complexes. Despite differences in their overall structures, these complexes, through their interactions with small GTPases, SNARE proteins, and lipids, are proposed to physically connect the vesicle and target membrane to promote SNARE complex assembly and membrane fusion at the correct cellular locations.