MENTHO or STARD3 N-terminal like protein (STARD3NL) is an
integral membrane protein
An integral, or intrinsic, membrane protein (IMP) is a type of membrane protein that is permanently attached to the biological membrane. All transmembrane proteins can be classified as IMPs, but not all IMPs are transmembrane proteins. IMPs comp ...
of unknown function.
As the alternate name implies, MENTHO, short for "MLN64 N-terminal homologue", contains a region in its N-terminus similar to that found in STARD3, also known as
MLN64, but lacks the
StAR-related transfer domain
START (StAR-related lipid-transfer) is a lipid-binding domain in StAR, HD-ZIP and signalling proteins. The archetypical domain is found in StAR (Steroidogenic acute regulatory protein), a mitochondrial protein that is synthesized in steroid-pro ...
(START) that characterizes all other proteins given the "STARD" (START domain-containing) name. The
N-terminal
The N-terminus (also known as the amino-terminus, NH2-terminus, N-terminal end or amine-terminus) is the start of a protein or polypeptide, referring to the free amine group (-NH2) located at the end of a polypeptide. Within a peptide, the amin ...
domain is called a
MENTAL
Mental may refer to:
* of or relating to the mind
Films
* ''Mental'' (2012 film), an Australian comedy-drama film starring Toni Collette
* ''Mental'' (2016 film), a Bangladeshi romantic-action film starring Shakib Khan
* ''Mental'', a 2008 docu ...
(MLN64 N-terminal) domain.
Like MLN64, MENTHO is widely expressed in tissues of the body. Within the
cell
Cell most often refers to:
* Cell (biology), the functional basic unit of life
* Cellphone, a phone connected to a cellular network
* Clandestine cell, a penetration-resistant form of a secret or outlawed organization
* Electrochemical cell, a de ...
, it localizes to the membranes of
late endosome
Late or LATE may refer to:
Everyday usage
* Tardy, or late, not being on time
* Late (or the late) may refer to a person who is dead
Music
* ''Late'' (The 77s album), 2000
* Late (Alvin Batiste album), 1993
* Late!, a pseudonym used by Dave Groh ...
s and may interact there with MLN64. It is suggested that in combination with MLN64, this protein helps regulate the flow of
cholesterol
Cholesterol is the principal sterol of all higher animals, distributed in body Tissue (biology), tissues, especially the brain and spinal cord, and in Animal fat, animal fats and oils.
Cholesterol is biosynthesis, biosynthesized by all anima ...
through the endosomal pathway.
References
Further reading
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External links
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Integral membrane proteins
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