[Apical endocytosis: molecular controls and physiopathologic implications]

Endocytosis is a distinctive property of all eukaryotic cells. Polarized cells face two different worlds by membranes of distinct composition: the basolateral membrane is exposed to the constant internal medium, whereas the apical membrane is exposed to variable environments. Endocytosis on both aspects also depends on different machineries. This short review illustrates the molecular basis and physiopathological implications of apical endocytosis. In a cultured epithelial cell line, Src selectively triggers apical macropinocytosis by activating the actin cytocortex via signalling membrane lipids generated by an amplification cascade involving phosphoinositide 3-kinase, phospholipase C and phospholipase D. Several actors of Src response are also activated by enteroinvasive bacteria, to trigger their entry into enterocytes. In the thyroid gland, the rates of thyroglobulin apical micropinocytosis and transfer to lysosomes determine the level of thyroid hormone production, by controlling the encounter of the prohormone with converting hydrolases. TSH selectively promotes the encounter, by inducing the expression of rate-limiting catalysts, the small GTPases Rab5 and Rab7, and of their exchange factor(s). This induction is constitutive in autonomous adenomas. In kidney proximal tubular cells, apical receptor-mediated endocytosis ensures full recapture of ultrafiltrated proteins. Inactivating mutations of the endosomal chloride channel, ClC-5, that are responsible for Dent's disease, cause a loss of surface receptors leading to proteinuria. These examples illustrate how three levels of regulation of apical endocytosis, namely the mode of entry, the rate of vesicular trafficking and the subcellular addressing account for a variety of human diseases.