The 56^th Annual Meeting and Symposium of the Society of General Physiologists Trafficking of Transporters : Organized by Ron R. Kopito and William N. Green

In addition to their direct catalytic role, the proper function of transport proteins depends on multiple cellular processes to ensure: that the protein is folded and assembled into its correct conformation; that misfolded proteins are degraded; that the protein is targeted to its correct location within the cell; that the copy number of the protein is maintained by regulated synthesis and turnover; and that any other proteins involved in the transport process, whether it be subunits in a macromolecular complex or proteins in other membrane domains, are present in sufficient number and in the correct location(s). The importance of membrane protein processing and targeting for normal cellular and body function has become abundantly clear over the past decade, as an increasing number of genetic “transport” diseases, with cystic fibrosis being the proto-typical example, turn out to be due to disrupted protein trafficking (compare M. Aridor...