title: How proteins enter the nucleus.
abstract: Nuclear protein import is a selective process. Proteins destined for the nucleus contain NLSs. These short stretches of amino acids interact with proteins located in the cytoplasm, on the nuclear envelope, and/or at the nuclear pore complex. Following binding at the pore complex, proteins are translocated through the pore into the nucleus in a manner requiring ATP. The biochemical dissection of the nuclear pore complex has begun. Alteration of protein import into the nucleus is emerging as a new and complex form of regulation. However, we are left with the following problems: How do proteins move through the cytoplasm to reach the nuclear pore? How does the nuclear pore complex open and close in a selective manner? How is ATP utilized during import? And finally, how is bi-directional traffic of both proteins and RNA through the pore regulated?
authors.affiliation: Department of Molecular Biology, Princeton University, New Jersey 08544.
authors.forename: P A
authors.initials: PA
authors.lastname: Silver
mesh_terms: D000255:Adenosine Triphosphate / Q000378:metabolism; D000595:Amino Acid Sequence; D000818:Animals; D001693:Biological Transport, Active; D002451:Cell Compartmentation; D002453:Cell Cycle; D002467:Cell Nucleus / Q000378:metabolism*; D004252:DNA Mutational Analysis; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D009685:Nuclear Envelope / Q000378:metabolism / Q000648:ultrastructure; D009687:Nuclear Proteins / Q000378:metabolism*; D013329:Structure-Activity Relationship
chemical_list: D009687:Nuclear Proteins; D000255:Adenosine Triphosphate