Regulation of membrane transport by rab GTPases

Abstract

Membrane flow through the cell is a highly dynamic process in which intracellular compartments communicate via tubulo-vesicular structures shuttling cargo molecules to their destinations. Transport carriers are formed at a donor compartment and navigate through the cytoplasm to the target organelle, on which they subsequently dock and fuse. Many of these events are regulated by the cooperative action of monomeric rab GTPases and their effector proteins. Research in recent years resulted in the identification of many rab effectors, providing first glimpses how the GTPase switch of individual rab proteins is utilized in discrete transport steps.