ABCG1 (ABC8), the Human Homolog of the Drosophila White Gene, Is a Regulator of Macrophage Cholesterol and Phospholipid Transport
ABCG1 (ABC8), the human homolog of the Drosophila white gene, is a regulator of macrophage cholesterol and phospholipid transport Jochen Klucken*, Christa Bu¨ chler*, Evelyn Orso´ *, Wolfgang E. Kaminski*, Mustafa Porsch-Ozcu¨ ¨ ru¨ mez*, Gerhard Liebisch*, Michael Kapinsky*, Wendy Diederich*, Wolfgang Drobnik*, Michael Dean†, Rando Allikmets‡, and Gerd Schmitz*§ *Institute for Clinical Chemistry and Laboratory Medicine, University of Regensburg, 93042 Regensburg, Germany; †National Cancer Institute, Laboratory of Genomic Diversity, Frederick, MD 21702-1201; and ‡Departments of Ophthalmology and Pathology, Columbia University, Eye Research Addition, New York, NY 10032 Edited by Jan L. Breslow, The Rockefeller University, New York, NY, and approved November 3, 1999 (received for review June 14, 1999) Excessive uptake of atherogenic lipoproteins such as modified low- lesterol transport. Although several effector molecules have been density lipoprotein complexes by vascular macrophages leads to proposed to participate in macrophage cholesterol efflux (6, 9), foam cell formation, a critical step in atherogenesis. Cholesterol efflux including endogenous apolipoprotein E (10) and the cholesteryl mediated by high-density lipoproteins (HDL) constitutes a protective ester transfer protein (11), the detailed molecular mechanisms mechanism against macrophage lipid overloading. The molecular underlying cholesterol export in these cells have not yet been mechanisms underlying this reverse cholesterol transport process are characterized. currently not fully understood. To identify effector proteins that are Recently, mutations of the ATP-binding cassette (ABC) trans- involved in macrophage lipid uptake and release, we searched for porter ABCA1 gene have been causatively linked to familial HDL genes that are regulated during lipid influx and efflux in human deficiency and Tangier disease (12–14).
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