Gebert Natalia, Ryan Michael T, Pfanner Nikolaus, Wiedemann Nils, Stojanovski Diana
Institut für Biochemie und Molekularbiologie, ZBMZ, Universität Freiburg, 79104 Freiburg, Germany.
Biochim Biophys Acta. 2011 Mar;1808(3):1002-11. doi: 10.1016/j.bbamem.2010.08.003. Epub 2010 Aug 7.
Protein trafficking and translocation are essential processes in even the simplest living cells. The compartmentalisation within eukaryotic cells places a very high demand on the fidelity of protein trafficking and translocation, since a large percentage of the cell's protein complement is inserted into, or translocated across membranes. Indeed, most mitochondrial proteins are imported from the cytosol into the organelle and reach their final destination with the assistance of versatile translocation machineries. The first components involved in mitochondrial protein import were identified about 20years ago and over the last two decades many new factors and machineries have been brought to light. However, in spite of these discoveries we still have much to explore regarding the molecular mechanisms that distinguish the different mitochondrial import pathways. In particular, an open question that requires deeper exploration is the role of lipids and lipid modifying enzymes in this process. Mitochondrial biogenesis requires the coordinated synthesis and import of both proteins and phospholipids, however, these have typically been considered as distinct research fields. Recent findings have placed phospholipids at the forefront of research dealing with mitochondrial biogenesis, in particular their role in the regulation of mitochondrial transport machineries. This article is part of a Special Issue entitled Protein translocation across or insertion into membranes.
即使在最简单的活细胞中，蛋白质运输和转运也是必不可少的过程。真核细胞内的区室化对蛋白质运输和转运的保真度提出了很高的要求，因为细胞内很大一部分蛋白质需要插入膜中或跨膜转运。实际上，大多数线粒体蛋白质都是从细胞质中导入细胞器，并在多功能转运机制的协助下到达其最终目的地。大约20年前，人们首次发现了参与线粒体蛋白质导入的成分，在过去的二十年里，许多新的因子和机制被揭示出来。然而，尽管有这些发现，关于区分不同线粒体导入途径的分子机制，我们仍有许多需要探索的地方。特别是，一个需要深入探索的开放性问题是脂质和脂质修饰酶在这个过程中的作用。线粒体生物发生需要蛋白质和磷脂的协调合成与导入，然而，这些通常被视为不同的研究领域。最近的研究结果使磷脂成为线粒体生物发生研究的前沿领域，特别是它们在调节线粒体转运机制中的作用。本文是名为“蛋白质跨膜转运或插入膜中”的特刊的一部分。
