Rab1b helps lipid droplets grow by guiding DGAT2 from the cell’s protein-making area to lipid droplets

Rab1b is associated with the redistribution of the enzyme DGAT2 to lipid droplets.

• Lipid droplets are formed with a triglyceride core and a protein-rich monolayer.
• Rab1b, a protein involved in cellular transport, may recruit lipid-synthesizing enzymes to lipid droplets.
• Overexpression of a dominant-negative form of Rab1b in human liver cancer cells prevents lipid droplet formation.
• Fluorescence resonance energy transfer (FRET) studies indicate that Rab1b facilitates the movement of DGAT2 to the surface of lipid droplets.
• Mutations in the Rab1b-GTPase activating protein TBC1D20 in model mice alter lipid droplet metabolism and DGAT2 localization.

Simplified