Cells communicate through proteins embedded in their cell
membranes. These proteins have diverse functions and can be compared with
antennas, switches and gates. For the well-being of the cell, it has to adjust
the composition of its membrane proteins and lipids constantly. New proteins
are incorporated, while old proteins get recycled or eliminated. The process by
which membrane material gets internalized is called endocytosis. A research
team headed by Daniël van Damme and Geert De Jaeger from VIB and Ghent
University (Belgium), and Staffan Persson from the Max Planck Institute of
Molecular Plant Physiology in Golm near Potsdam (Germany) has now identified a
new protein complex which is crucial for endocytosis in plants. This finding
has now been published in the scientific journal Cell.