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Encyclopedia of Cancer pp 1–5Cite as

ABC-Transporters

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Synonyms

ATP-binding cassette-transporters; Multidrug resistance transporters; Traffic ATPases

Definition

ABC (ATP-binding cassette)-transporters are membrane-embedded proteins with a characteristic ABC domain that utilize the energy from ATP hydrolysis for the transport of their substrates across a cellular membrane.

Characteristics

The superfamily of ABC-transporters comprises one of the most abundant protein families in nature. These transporters are believed to date back in evolutionary time more than 3 billion years and are distributed in all three kingdoms of living organisms, archaea, eubacteria, and eukaryotes. Archaea are a unique group of microorganisms classified as bacteria (Archaeobacteria) but genetically and metabolically different from all other known bacteria. They appear to be living fossils, the survivors of an ancient group of organisms that bridged the gap in evolution between bacteria and the eukaryotes.

ABC-transporters have to be distinguished from ABC-proteins....

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References

  • Gottesman MM, Fojo T, Bates SE (2002) Multidrug resistance in cancer: role of ATP-dependent transporters. Nat Rev Cancer 2:48–58

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  • Higgins CF (1993) ABC transporters: from microorganisms to man. Annu Rev Cell Biol 8:7–113

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  • Holland IB, Cole SPC, Kuchler K, Higgins CF (eds) (2003) ABC proteins from bacteria to man. Academic Press, an Imprint of Elsevier Science, London/San Diego

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  • Lage H (2003) ABC-transporters: implications on drug resistance from microorganisms to human cancers. Int J Antimicrob Agents 22:188–199

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See Also

  • (2012) Antimetabolite. In: Schwab M (ed) Encyclopedia of Cancer, 3rd edn. Springer Berlin Heidelberg, p 216. doi: 10.1007/978-3-642-16483-5_326

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  • (2012) Ciclosporin. In: Schwab M (ed) Encyclopedia of Cancer, 3rd edn. Springer Berlin Heidelberg, p 857. doi: 10.1007/978-3-642-16483-5_1167

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  • (2012) DNA Repair. In: Schwab M (ed) Encyclopedia of Cancer, 3rd edn. Springer Berlin Heidelberg, p 1141. doi: 10.1007/978-3-642-16483-5_1687

    Google Scholar 

  • (2012) Epipodophyllotoxins. In: Schwab M (ed) Encyclopedia of Cancer, 3rd edn. Springer Berlin Heidelberg, p 1291. doi: 10.1007/978-3-642-16483-5_1953

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  • (2012) Multidrug Resistance. In: Schwab M (ed) Encyclopedia of Cancer, 3rd edn. Springer Berlin Heidelberg, p 2393. doi: 10.1007/978-3-642-16483-5_3887

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  • (2012) Taxane. In: Schwab M (ed) Encyclopedia of Cancer, 3rd edn. Springer Berlin Heidelberg, p 3614. doi: 10.1007/978-3-642-16483-5_5689

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  • (2012) Verapamil. In: Schwab M (ed) Encyclopedia of Cancer, 3rd edn. Springer Berlin Heidelberg, p 3906. doi: 10.1007/978-3-642-16483-5_6179

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  • (2012) Vinca Alkaloids. In: Schwab M (ed) Encyclopedia of Cancer, 3rd edn. Springer Berlin Heidelberg, p 3908. doi: 10.1007/978-3-642-16483-5_6187

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Institute of Pathology, Charité Campus Mitte, Berlin, Germany

    Hermann Lage

Authors
  1. Hermann Lage
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Hermann Lage .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Abt. Tumorgenetik, Deutsches Krebsforschungszentrum, Heidelberg, Germany

    Manfred Schwab

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Lage, H. (2014). ABC-Transporters. In: Schwab, M. (eds) Encyclopedia of Cancer. Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-27841-9_13-5

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-27841-9_13-5

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  • Publisher Name: Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg

  • Online ISBN: 978-3-642-27841-9

  • eBook Packages: Springer Reference Biomedicine and Life SciencesReference Module Biomedical and Life Sciences

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