Constitutively active ESCRT-II suppresses the MVB-sorting phenotype of ESCRT-0 and ESCRT-I mutants

The endosomal sorting complex required for transport (ESCRT) protein complexes function at the endosome in the formation of intraluminal vesicles (ILVs) containing cargo proteins destined for the vacuolar/lysosomal lumen. The early ESCRTs (ESCRT-0 and -I) are likely involved in cargo sorting, whereas ESCRT-III and Vps4 function to sever the neck of the forming ILVs. ESCRT-II links these functions by initiating ESCRT-III formation in an ESCRT-I-regulated manner. We identify a constitutively active mutant of ESCRT-II that partially suppresses the phenotype of an ESCRT-I or ESCRT-0 deletion strain, suggesting that these early ESCRTs are not essential and have redundant functions. However, the ESCRT-III/Vps4 system alone is not sufficient for ILV formation but requires cargo sorting mediated by one of the early ESCRTs.