Publisher's Synopsis
This special issue of "Cellular Physiology and Biochemistry," the second in the miniseries "The Molecules of Transport," presents a number of valuable reviews on P-type ATPases. These polypeptides represent a class of integral membranes proteins that transport cations across cell membranes. Their common characteristic is that they are temporarily phosphorylated at an aspartate residue during the transport cycle.;P-type ATPases can be classified with respect to the cations they transport. Examples of the different groups featured in this issue include Na(+)/K(+)-ATPase and H(+)/K(+)-ATPase, the Ca(2+)-ATPases of the sarcoplasmic reticulum and of the plasma membrane, and the bacterial K(+)-transporting ATPase Kdp. Experts in the field discuss recent findings concerning their structure and functions, thus providing the basis for a comparison of P-type ATPases and for a better understanding of structure-function relationships in general.
