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Summary: N E W S A N D V I E W S
NATURE CELL BIOLOGY VOLUME 5 | NUMBER 12 | DECEMBER 2003 1045
Polarized epithelial cells are characterized by
physically separate apical and basolateral sur-
faces, each with distinct lipid and protein
composition. Once established, cell polariza-
tion is maintained by dedicated protein sort-
ing pathways that promote proper delivery of
newly synthesized membrane components
from the trans-Golgi network (TGN) or recy-
cling of internalized proteins back to the
appropriate cell surface. Basolateral targeting
is often governed by tyrosine- or dileucine-
based sorting signals within the cytosolic por-
tion of integral membrane proteins. At least a
subset of these basolateral sorting signals are
decoded by the epithelial-specific adaptor
protein complex AP-1B. New work published
in the Journal of Cell Biology begins to lift the
veil on how AP-1B operates and challenges
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