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Finding the right organelle
Author(s) -
Rapaport Doron
Publication year - 2003
Publication title -
embo reports
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 4.584
H-Index - 184
eISSN - 1469-3178
pISSN - 1469-221X
DOI - 10.1038/sj.embor.embor937
Subject(s) - organelle , mitochondrion , microbiology and biotechnology , cytosol , translocase of the inner membrane , translocase of the outer membrane , mitochondrial carrier , mitochondrial membrane transport protein , bacterial outer membrane , biology , mitochondrial fusion , inner mitochondrial membrane , biochemistry , mitochondrial dna , enzyme , gene , escherichia coli
The mitochondrial outer membrane contains a diverse set of proteins that includes enzymes, components of the preprotein translocation machinery, pore‐forming proteins, regulators of programmed cell death, and those that control the morphology of the organelle. All these proteins, like the vast majority of mitochondrial proteins, are encoded in the nucleus, so they are synthesized in the cytosol and contain signals that are essential for their subsequent import into mitochondria. This review summarizes our current knowledge of the signals that target mitochondrial outer‐membrane proteins to their correct intracellular location. In addition, the mechanisms by which these signals are decoded by the mitochondria are discussed.