ABC Transporters - 40 Years on
This book provides new structural, biochemical, and clinical information on ABC transporters. The authors explore and describe the state of the art of research, knowledge, and prospects for the future for this important family of proteins. The first ABC t
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ABC Transporters —40 Years on
ABC Transporters—40 Years on
Anthony M. George Editor
ABC Transporters— 40 Years on
123
Editor Anthony M. George School of Life Sciences University of Technology Sydney Australia
ISBN 978-3-319-23475-5 DOI 10.1007/978-3-319-23476-2
ISBN 978-3-319-23476-2
(eBook)
Library of Congress Control Number: 2015952058 Springer Cham Heidelberg New York Dordrecht London © Springer International Publishing Switzerland 2016 This work is subject to copyright. All rights are reserved by the Publisher, whether the whole or part of the material is concerned, specifically the rights of translation, reprinting, reuse of illustrations, recitation, broadcasting, reproduction on microfilms or in any other physical way, and transmission or information storage and retrieval, electronic adaptation, computer software, or by similar or dissimilar methodology now known or hereafter developed. The use of general descriptive names, registered names, trademarks, service marks, etc. in this publication does not imply, even in the absence of a specific statement, that such names are exempt from the relevant protective laws and regulations and therefore free for general use. The publisher, the authors and the editors are safe to assume that the advice and information in this book are believed to be true and accurate at the date of publication. Neither the publisher nor the authors or the editors give a warranty, express or implied, with respect to the material contained herein or for any errors or omissions that may have been made. Printed on acid-free paper Springer International Publishing AG Switzerland is part of Springer Science+Business Media (www.springer.com)
Foreword
Forty years after their discovery ATP-binding cassette (ABC) transporter proteins continue to fascinate and attract new generations of investigators. At its heart is the recognition that the ability of living organisms to regulate the trafficking of molecules across biological membranes is necessary for sustaining life, and that all life forms (from bacteria, to plants, to humans) have devoted a significant proportion of their genomes to evolve superfamilies of ABC transporters to meet this critical need. What are the normal physiological functions of these transporters? How do they work? What are the “rules” that govern the kind of molecules transported? Are they related to known human diseases? Can they be exploited for drug development? These are some of the key questions being investigated. Originally, the problem of multidrug resistance (MDR) in cancer chemotherapy led to the discovery of P-glycoprotein (P-gp) (ABCB1), the first ABC transporter protein identified in mammalian cells. P-gp has the remarkable capability of mediating resistance to multiple structurally diverse drugs. The clinical importance of MDR, the promise that the blocking of P-gp function could potentially reverse MDR and benefit a large number of cancer patients drove the research. The “gold rush” was on. For a historical account of its discovery and the more importa
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