Regulation of Plant Transporters by Lipids and Microdomains

Transporters in the broad sense, that is, carriers, pumps, and channels, are proteins inserted in a lipid bilayer separating two cellular compartments. This lipid bilayer is not only the physical support of such proteins, but also a powerful way to regulate their activity. This chapter will first summarize the different means by which lipids can regulate the activity of transmembrane proteins (including the physical properties of the bilayer, its dynamic lateral compartmentalization, and the presence of particular lipid species acting as cofactors). It will then illustrate these general rules with examples of such regulations found in plant literature and, as a reference, in animal studies.