Role of Ubiquitin and SUMO in Intracellular Trafficking

Precise location of proteins at a given time within a cell is essential to convey specific signals and result in a relevant functional outcome. Small ubiquitin-like modifications, such as ubiquitin and SUMO, represent a delicate and diverse way to transiently regulate intracellular trafficking events of existing proteins in cells. Trafficking of multiple proteins is controlled reversibly by ubiquitin and/or SUMO directly or indirectly via regulation of transport machinery components. Regulation is dynamic and multilayered, involving active crosstalk and interdependence between post-translational modifications. However, in most cases regulation appears very complex, and the mechanistic details regarding how ubiquitin and SUMO control protein location in cells are not yet fully understood. Moreover, most of the findings still lack in vivo evidence in multicellular organisms.