Campo María Luisa, Peixoto Pablo M, Martínez-Caballero Sonia
Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Faculty of Veterinary Sciences, University of Extremadura, 10003, Cáceres, Spain.
Graduate Center and Baruch College of the City University of New York, New York, NY, 10010, USA.
J Bioenerg Biomembr. 2017 Feb;49(1):75-99. doi: 10.1007/s10863-016-9662-z. Epub 2016 May 5.
The discovery of very large channels in the two membranes of mitochondria represented an astonishing finding and a turning point in the awareness of these conspicuous energy-generating organelles. Sizable channels are at the crossroads of important cellular pathways and mitochondrial functions like biogenesis, signaling, secretion, compartmentalization or apoptosis. The integrative approach that combines electrophysiological methods with biochemical and genetic alterations has been decisive to tackle the structure-function relationship of mitochondrial mega-channels. In this review we will give a short account of our joint effort to correlate the existence of large conductance channels in the two membranes of mitochondria with a precise function. In particular, we will focus on the import of proteins and nucleic acids. An analysis of the character of the aqueous pores through which these two types of macromolecules enter mitochondria has been attained, and an up-to date survey of the developments reached in these investigations will be presented. An overlook of the import pathways for proteins and nucleic acids into mitochondria will be outlined. Although this research area is rapidly developing, many issues remain shrouded in uncertainties. A special emphasis will be prone to the not yet entirely settled synergies between different protein translocases.
在线粒体的内外两层膜中发现非常大的通道是一个惊人的发现，也是人们对这些引人注目的能量产生细胞器认识的一个转折点。相当大的通道处于重要细胞途径和线粒体功能（如生物发生、信号传导、分泌、区室化或细胞凋亡）的交叉点。将电生理方法与生化和基因改变相结合的综合方法对于解决线粒体大通道的结构-功能关系起了决定性作用。在这篇综述中，我们将简要介绍我们为将线粒体两层膜中存在的大电导通道与特定功能联系起来所做的共同努力。特别是，我们将重点关注蛋白质和核酸的导入。我们已经对这两种大分子进入线粒体所通过的水相孔的特性进行了分析，并将对这些研究中取得的进展进行最新综述。我们将概述蛋白质和核酸进入线粒体的导入途径。尽管这个研究领域正在迅速发展，但许多问题仍笼罩在不确定性之中。我们将特别强调不同蛋白质转运体之间尚未完全确定的协同作用。
