TY - JOUR
T1 - TSPO
T2 - An evolutionarily conserved protein with elusive functions
AU - Bonsack, Frederick
AU - Sukumari-Ramesh, Sangeetha
N1 - Funding Information:
Acknowledgments: This work was supported by a grant from the American Heart Association (14SDG18730034) and Augusta University start-up funds to S.S-R. None of the funding bodies had a role in the study design, data collection, data analysis, data interpretation, or writing of the manuscript. We also would like to acknowledge Carlos Isales, MD, Department of Neuroscience and Regenerative Medicine, Augusta University for providing us with the aged mice.
Publisher Copyright:
© 2018 by the authors. Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland.
PY - 2018/6/7
Y1 - 2018/6/7
N2 - TSPO (18 kDa translocator protein) was identified decades ago in a search for peripheral tissue binding sites for benzodiazepines, and was formerly called the peripheral benzodiazepine receptor. TSPO is a conserved protein throughout evolution and it is implicated in the regulation of many cellular processes, including inflammatory responses, oxidative stress, and mitochondrial homeostasis. TSPO, apart from its broad expression in peripheral tissues, is highly expressed in neuroinflammatory cells, such as activated microglia. In addition, emerging studies employing the ligands of TSPO suggest that TSPO plays an important role in neuropathological settings as a biomarker and therapeutic target. However, the precise molecular function of this protein in normal physiology and neuropathology remains enigmatic. This review provides an overview of recent advances in our understanding of this multifaceted molecule and identifies the knowledge gap in the field for future functional studies.
AB - TSPO (18 kDa translocator protein) was identified decades ago in a search for peripheral tissue binding sites for benzodiazepines, and was formerly called the peripheral benzodiazepine receptor. TSPO is a conserved protein throughout evolution and it is implicated in the regulation of many cellular processes, including inflammatory responses, oxidative stress, and mitochondrial homeostasis. TSPO, apart from its broad expression in peripheral tissues, is highly expressed in neuroinflammatory cells, such as activated microglia. In addition, emerging studies employing the ligands of TSPO suggest that TSPO plays an important role in neuropathological settings as a biomarker and therapeutic target. However, the precise molecular function of this protein in normal physiology and neuropathology remains enigmatic. This review provides an overview of recent advances in our understanding of this multifaceted molecule and identifies the knowledge gap in the field for future functional studies.
KW - 18 kDa translocator protein
KW - Glial activation
KW - Neuroimaging
KW - Steroidogenesis
KW - TSPO
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85048288585&partnerID=8YFLogxK
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/citedby.url?scp=85048288585&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.3390/ijms19061694
DO - 10.3390/ijms19061694
M3 - Review article
C2 - 29875327
AN - SCOPUS:85048288585
SN - 1661-6596
VL - 19
JO - International Journal of Molecular Sciences
JF - International Journal of Molecular Sciences
IS - 6
M1 - 1694
ER -