Role of the rab5 guanine nucleotide exchange factor, Rme-6, in the regulation of clathrin-coated vesicle uncoating.

Clathrin-coated pits are major ports of entry into eukaryotic cells. Following scission of clathrin-coated pits to form coated vesicles, the peripheral membrane proteins that form the coat need to be removed. Here we describe an assay that provides a measure of the extent of clathrin coat uncoating in intact cells. This assay has been used to investigate rab5-dependent modulation of uncoating. Specifically, it has been used to identify functional differences between rab5 guanine nucleotide exchange factors.