Polarised clathrin-mediated endocytosis of EGFR during chemotactic invasion.

Directed cell migration is critical for numerous physiological processes including development and wound healing. However chemotaxis is also exploited during cancer progression. Recent reports have suggested links between vesicle trafficking pathways and directed cell migration.

Mechanisms of viral entry: sneaking in the front door.

Recent developments in methods to study virus internalisation are providing clearer insights into mechanisms used by viruses to enter host cells. The use of dominant negative constructs, specific inhibitory drugs and RNAi to selectively prevent entry through particular pathways has provided evidence for the clathrin-mediated entry of hepatitis C virus (HCV) as well as the caveolar entry of Simian Virus 40. Moreover, the ability to image and track fluorescent-labelled virus particles in real-time has begun to challenge the classical plasma membrane entry mechanisms described for poliovirus and human immunodeficiency virus.