ABC exporters from a structural perspective

Abstract

ABC exporters belong to the ABC transporter superfamily and are found in all organisms. Since ABC exporters are involved in drug efflux and associated with frequent hereditary diseases such as cystic fibrosis, they are of direct medical interest. Despite 40 years of research on ABC exporters, many key questions regarding their molecular mechanism remain unclear or are under debate. The youngest decade of ABC exporter research has produced a dozen full-length ABC exporter structures. While the overall fold is highly conserved, the observed conformations are remarkably diverse. In this review, the crystallographic ABC exporter snapshots are assembled into a photo story and the mechanistic implications derived from these crystal structures are critically discussed.