Grant: Operating Grant

The cell surface is defined by the plasma membrane, which separates the cell interior from the external world. The plasma membrane is studded with proteins that have multiple functions, for example allowing a cell to interact with other cells. These proteins are continuously brought into the cell in a process called endocytosis and are delivered to endosomes. From there they are either targeted for degradation or are recycled back to the plasma membrane. Disruptions in this sorting process have dire consequences, for example, if proteins mediating cell-cell contact fail to return to the surface the cell loses contact with other cells, separates from the tissue and begins to migrate. This is exactly what happens in certain forms of cancer. This project will examine how the recycling process occurs and how it is disrupted in cancer.