Actomyosin II contractility expels von Willebrand factor from Weibel-Palade bodies during exocytosis.

The study of actin in regulated exocytosis has a long history with many different results in numerous systems. A major limitation on identifying precise mechanisms has been the paucity of experimental systems in which actin function has been directly assessed alongside granule content release at distinct steps of exocytosis of a single secretory organelle with sufficient spatiotemporal resolution. Using dual-color confocal microscopy and correlative electron microscopy in human endothelial cells, we visually distinguished two sequential steps of secretagogue-stimulated exocytosis: fusion of individual secretory granules (Weibel-Palade bodies [WPBs]) and subsequent expulsion of von Willebrand factor (VWF) content.