Wherever I may roam: organellar protein targeting and evolvability

Many functions of eukaryotic cells are compartmentalized within membrane-bound organelles. One or more cis-encoded signals within a polypeptide sequence typically govern protein targeting to and within destination organelles. Perhaps unexpectedly, organelle targeting does not occur with high specificity, but instead is characterized by considerable degeneracy and inefficiency. Indeed, the same peptide signals can target proteins to more than one location, randomized sequences can easily direct proteins to organelles, and many enzymes appear to traverse different subcellular settings across eukaryotic phylogeny. We discuss the potential benefits provided by flexibility in organelle targeting, with a special emphasis on horizontally transferred and de novo proteins. Moreover, we consider how these new organelle residents can be protected and maintained before they contribute to the needs of the cell and promote fitness.