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Cover The Golgi complex functions as a central way station for
proteins synthesized at the endoplasmic reticulum, processing these
proteins and sorting them for transport to their final destinations in
the lysosome, plasma membrane, or extracellular medium. One of the
major aspects of protein processing done by the Golgi complex is the
modification of N-linked oligosaccharides. The Golgi complex first trims the high-mannose oligosaccharide chains added to proteins in the endoplasmic reticulum, then adds specific sugars, including fucose, to the trimmed chains. One of the first reports of the posttranslational modification of N-linked oligosaccharides
by the Golgi complex was contributed by Gary Bennett and Charles Philippe Leblond. The image on the cover shows a striking electron microscopic radioautograph of rat intestinal columnar cells, fixed shortly after intravenous injection of radiolabeled fucose. Tortuous silver grains overlie the Golgi complex, defining the site of fucose
addition to proteins passaging through the secretory pathway. Leblond
and his colleagues pioneered the use of microscopic radioautography to
reveal the dynamic nature not only of cells themselves but of the
molecular processes occurring within them. (Reprinted with permission
from Bennett, G. and Leblond, C.P. [1970]. Formation of cell coat
material for the whole surface of columnar cells in the rat small
intestine, as visualized by radioautography with L-fucose-3H. J. Cell Biol. 46,
409-416).
Richard Rachubinski