Polarized endocytic transport: the roles of Rab11 and Rab11-FIPs in regulating cell polarity.

Endocytic transport plays a vital role in the establishment and maintenance of cell polarity. Many studies have demonstrated that endosome-dependent protein targeting is required for polarization of epithelial cells and neurons. Endocytic transport regulates several highly polarized cellular events, such as cell motility and division. Rab11 GTPase has been shown to be a master regulator of protein transport via recycling endosomes, and many recent studies have focused on the molecular machinery that mediates Rab11-dependent endocytic protein transport in polarized cells. This mini-review describes the recent advances in identifying and characterizing the role of Rab11 and its effector proteins that play important roles in polarized endocytic sorting and transport.