May 7, 2026Current Opinion in Cell Biology1 citationsOpen Access
The formation, dynamics, and disassembly of caveolae
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Key Points
- This review aims to elucidate the formation, dynamics, and disassembly of caveolae in mammalian cells.
- Review of recent advancements in the understanding of caveolae function and structure
- Examination of caveolae in various mammalian cell types including skeletal muscle and adipocytes
- Focus on how caveolar components respond to cellular stressors
- Caveolae are implicated in multiple diseases, focusing on pulmonary hypertension and lipodystrophies
- In-depth insights into the molecular mechanisms governing caveolae formation and dynamics
- Potential implications for treatment strategies targeting caveolar dysregulation
Abstract
Caveolae are a highly abundant surface feature of many mammalian cells, including skeletal muscle, smooth muscle, adipocytes, and fibroblasts. Dysregulation of caveolae has been implicated in a range of diseases, including muscular dystrophies, lipodystrophies, pulmonary hypertension, and various cancers. Despite their well-established links to human disease, our molecular understanding of caveolae function at the cellular level is only now emerging. Recent advances have begun to clarify how changes in caveolar components contribute to the diverse cellular processes attributed to these specialised membrane domains. This review will highlight the latest insights into the formation of caveolae and the features of these surface domains, with particular focus on the dynamic reorganisation of caveolae in response to cellular stressors.