ENDOCYTOSIS AND TRANSCYTOSIS

Vesicular coat proteins mediate the formation of nascent vesicles and select the cargo to be incorporated therein. As additional coat protei ns are discovered that regulate vesicular traffic along very specific intracellular pathways, the possibility looms of regulating the intrac ellular trafficking and targeting of therapeutic agents by modulation of the action of vesicular coat proteins. Examples are provided of coa t proteins thought to regulate the trafficking of pharmaceutically rel evant molecules via clathrin-mediated endocytosis, caveolae-mediated e ndocytosis, and transcytosis. (C) 1998 Elsevier Science B.V.