Regulation of class III (Vps34) PI3Ks

The class III PI3K (phosphoinositide 3-kinase), Vps34 (vacuolar protein sorting 34), was first identified as a regulator of vacuolar hydrolase sorting in yeast. Unlike other PI3Ks, the Vps34 lipid kinase specifically utilizes phosphatidylinositol as a substrate, producing the single lipid product PtdIns3P. While Vps34 has been studied for some time in the context of endocytosis and vesicular trafficking, it has more recently been implicated as an important regulator of autophagy, trimeric G-protein signalling, and the mTOR (mammalian target of rapamycin) nutrient-sensing pathway. The present paper will focus on studies that describe the regulation of hVps34 (human Vps34) intracellular targeting and enzymatic activity in yeast and mammalian cells.