Vacuolar protein sorting-associated protein 16 homolog (VPS16)

Plays a role in vesicle-mediated protein trafficking into lysosomal compartments including the endocytic membrane transport and autophagic pathways. Believed to function as a core part of the putative HOPS and CORVET endosomal tethering complexes which are proposed to be involved in the Rab5-to-Rab7 endosome conversion likely implicating MON1A/B, and via binding SNAREs and SNARE complexes to mediate tethering and docking events during SNARE-mediated membrane fusion.

The CORVET complex is proposed to function as a Rab5 effector to mediate early endosome fusion likely in specific endosome subpopulations (PubMed:11382755, PubMed:23351085, PubMed:24554770, PubMed:25266290, PubMed:25783203). Required for recruiting of VPS33A into the HOPS complex (PubMed:23901104).