This entry represents the Rab29/Rab38/Rab32 subfamily. They are members of the Rab family of small GTPases. Human Rab32 was first identified in platelets but it is expressed in a variety of cell types, where it functions as an A-kinase anchoring protein (AKAP) []. Rab32 and closely related Rab38 are functionally redundant regulators of melanosomal protein trafficking and melanocyte pigmentation [, ].Ras-related protein Rab29 (also known as RAB7L) is related to Rab32 and Rab38. Rab29 regulates phagocytosis and traffic from the Golgi to the lysosome []. It is associated with trans-Golgi network (TGN) and is essential for maintaining the integrity of the TGN. Together with LRRK2, it plays a role in the retrograde trafficking pathway for recycling proteins, such as mannose 6 phosphate receptor (M6PR), between lysosomes and the Golgi apparatus in a retromer-dependent manner []. Rab29, Rab32 and Rab38 can be cleaved by GtgE, which is an effector protein from Salmonella Typhimurium that modulates trafficking of the Salmonella-containing vacuole (SCV) []. By targeting these GTPases, GtgE allows survival of the pathogen by preventing the delivery of antimicrobial factors to the SCV [].
