Synaptotagmins constitute a large family of membrane proteins characterized by their distinct distributions and different biochemical features. Genetic evidence suggests that members of this protein family are likely to function as calcium sensors in calcium-regulated events in neurons, although the precise molecular mechanism remains ill defined. Here we demonstrate that different synaptotagmin isoforms (Syt I, II, and IV) are present in the same synaptic vesicle population from rat brain cortex. In addition, Syt I and II co-localize on the same small synaptic vesicle (SSV), and they heterodimerize in the presence of calcium with a concentration dependence resembling that of the starting phase of SSV exocytosis (EC 50 ؍ 6 ؎ 4 M). The association between Syt I and Syt II was demonstrated by immunoprecipitation of the native proteins and the recombinant cytoplasmic domains and by using fluorescence resonance energy transfer (FRET). Although a subpopulation of SSV containing Syt I and IV can be isolated, these two isoforms do not show a calcium-dependent interaction. These results suggest that the self-association of synaptotagmins with different calcium binding features may create a variety of calcium sensors characterized by distinct calcium sensitivities. This combinatorial hypothesis predicts that the probability of a single SSV exocytic event is determined, in addition to the gating properties of the presynaptic calcium channels, by the repertoire and relative abundance of distinct synaptotagmin isoforms present on the SSV surface.Neuronal communication depends upon the transduction of an electric nerve impulse for the release of neurotransmitters from their storage compartment, the small synaptic vesicles (SSV).1 This tightly regulated process is triggered by the rapid increase of the intracellular calcium due to the opening of voltage-gated calcium channels at the active zones of the synaptic plasma membrane, which causes the activation of the SSV fusion machinery (1, 2). Of the proteins involved in the physiological cycle of the SSV, the members of the synaptotagmin family represent the best candidates for the role of calcium sensors in neurotransmitter release and, more generally, in regulated exocytosis (3-5). This protein family comprises more than a dozen members having the same overall structure and a variable degree of homology (4, 5). Synaptotagmins are integral membrane proteins with broad distributions in neuronal and non-neuronal tissues that vary between isoforms (4, 5). In the central nervous system and neuroendocrine cells, synaptotagmins are localized on SSV and secretory granules (6). These proteins are characterized by a single membrane-spanning domain and by a large cytoplasmic portion containing two internal repeats that have homology with the C2 domain of protein kinase C (7,8). This domain is known to regulate the calciumdependent translocation of protein kinase C to membranes and is present in many proteins with different functions (5, 8). In synaptotagmins, the two C2 domains are re...