摘要
Eukaryotic cells use endocytosis to regulate the cellular signaling transduction by modulating the number of available receptors and their activity at the plasma membrane.In addition to the well-studied clathrin-dependent endocytic pathway,various clathrin-independent mechanisms have been identified.The canonical clathrin-dependent
Eukaryotic ceils use endocytosis to regulate the cellular signaling transduction by modulating the number of avail- able receptors and their activity at the plasma membrane. In addition to the well-studied clathrin-dependent endocytic pathway, various clathrin-independent mechanisms have been identified. The canonical clathrin-dependent endocytic pathway is characterized by the involvement of clathrin and adaptor proteins. Among the diverse clathrin-independent pathways, the caveolae-mediated endocytosis is one of the best characterized. It has been found that the epidermal growth factor receptor （EGFR） was mainly internalized via the clathrin-dependent pathway and then recycled back to the cell surfaces at low-EGF stimulation [1]. However, at high EGF, the clathrin-independent pathway（s） destined the internalized receptor for degradation [1].
