title: Heads or tails--what determines the orientation of proteins in the membrane.
abstract: The same translocation machinery in the endoplasmic reticulum translocates either the N-or the C-terminal domain of signal-anchor proteins across the membranes. Charged residues flanking the signal sequence are important to determine which end is translocated, but are not sufficient to generate a uniform topology. The folding state of the N-terminal segment, which is to be translocated posttranslationally, and the length or hydrophobicity of the signal sequence are additional criteria to determine protein orientation in the membrane.
authors.affiliation: Department of Biochemistry, University of Basel, Switzerland.
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Spiess
mesh_terms: D001692:Biological Transport; D004721:Endoplasmic Reticulum / Q000378:metabolism*; D007425:Intracellular Membranes / Q000378:metabolism*; D008565:Membrane Proteins / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000648:ultrastructure*; D008954:Models, Biological; D017510:Protein Folding
chemical_list: D008565:Membrane Proteins