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Insights into Imaging
Fig. 4 | Insights into Imaging

Fig. 4

From: Current paradigm of the 18-kDa translocator protein (TSPO) as a molecular target for PET imaging in neuroinflammation and neurodegenerative diseases

Fig. 4

TSPO structures and functions. It is a hetero-oligomeric complex and consists of at least three different subunits, including the isoquinolone binding protein of 18-kDa TSPO, a voltage-dependent anion channel (VDAC) and an adenine nucleotide transporter (ANT). It contains inner and outer membrane contact sites to facilitate the passage of lipophilic molecules across the intermembrane space. The minimal functional unit or the binding site, however, is the 18-kDa protein. TSPO has four main functions: (1) cholesterol binding and transport into mitochondria, a key function in steroidogenesis and bile salt synthesis, (2) protein import for membrane biogenesis, and other cellular functions including apoptosis, cell proliferation, and differentiation, (3) porphyrin binding and transport for heme synthesis, and (4) regulation of mitochondrial functions

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