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Updated: Nov 24, 2025

Method to Visualize and Analyze Membrane Interacting Proteins by Transmission Electron Microscopy
Published on: March 5, 2017
Membrane-embedded TSPO: an NMR view
Gwladys Rivière1,2, Garima Jaipuria1,2, Loren B Andreas3
1Senior Research Group of Translational Structural Biology in Dementia, Deutsches Zentrum für Neurodegenerative Erkrankungen (DZNE), Von-Siebold-Str. 3a, 37075, Göttingen, Germany.
Abstract:
Translocator Protein (18 kDa) (TSPO) is a mitochondrial transmembrane protein commonly used as a biomarker for neuroinflammation and is also a potential therapeutic target in neurodegenerative diseases. Despite intensive research efforts, the function of TSPO is still largely enigmatic. Deciphering TSPO structure in the native lipid environment is essential to gain insight into its cellular activities and to design improved diagnostic and therapeutic ligands. Here, we discuss the influence of lipid composition on the structure of mammalian TSPO embedded into lipid bilayers on the basis of solid-state NMR experiments. We further highlight that cholesterol can influence both the tertiary and quaternary TSPO structure and also influence TSPO localization in mitochondria-associated endoplasmic reticulum membranes.
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