Molecular Motor Proteins of the Kinesin Superfamily Proteins (KIFs): Structure, Cargo and Disease

Intracellular organelle transport is essential for morphogenesis and functioning of the cell. Kinesins and kinesin-related proteins make up a large superfamily of molec-ular motors that transport cargoes such as vesicles, organelles (e.g. mitochondria, peroxisomes, lysosomes), protein complexes (e.g. elements of the cytoskeleton, virus particles), and mRNAs in a microtubule- and ATP-dependent manner in neu-ronal and non-neuronal cells. Until now, more than 45 kinesin superfamily proteins (KIFs) have been identified in the mouse and human genomes. Elucidating the trans-port pathways mediated by kinesins, the identities of the cargoes moved, and the nature of the proteins that link kinesin motors to cargoes are areas of intense inves-tigation. This review focuses on the structure, the binding partners of kinesins and kinesin-based human diseases. KCI Citation Count: 20