Cytochrome c oxidase (COX), the terminal component of the mitochondrial respiratory chain, catalyzes the electron transfer from reduced cytochrome c to oxygen. This component is a heteromeric complex consisting of 3 catalytic subunits encoded by mitochondrial genes and multiple structural subunits encoded by nuclear genes. The mitochondrially-encoded subunits function in electron transfer, and the nuclear-encoded subunits may function in the regulation and assembly of the complex. This nuclear gene encodes a protein which is not a structural subunit, but may be involved in the recruitment of copper to mitochondria for incorporation into the COX apoenzyme. This protein shares 92% amino acid sequence identity with mouse and rat Cox17 proteins. This gene is no longer considered to be a candidate gene for COX deficiency. A pseudogene COX17P has been found on chromosome 13.[6]
^"Human PubMed Reference:". National Center for Biotechnology Information, U.S. National Library of Medicine.
^"Mouse PubMed Reference:". National Center for Biotechnology Information, U.S. National Library of Medicine.
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Suzuki C, Daigo Y, Kikuchi T, et al. (2004). "Identification of COX17 as a therapeutic target for non-small cell lung cancer". Cancer Res. 63 (21): 7038–41. PMID14612491.
Kako K, Takehara A, Arai H, et al. (2005). "A selective requirement for copper-dependent activation of cytochrome c oxidase by Cox17p". Biochem. Biophys. Res. Commun. 324 (4): 1379–85. doi:10.1016/j.bbrc.2004.09.211. PMID15504366.
Ma J, Dempsey AA, Stamatiou D, et al. (2007). "Identifying leukocyte gene expression patterns associated with plasma lipid levels in human subjects". Atherosclerosis. 191 (1): 63–72. doi:10.1016/j.atherosclerosis.2006.05.032. PMID16806233.
Voronova A, Kazantseva J, Tuuling M, et al. (2007). "Cox17, a copper chaperone for cytochrome c oxidase: expression, purification, and formation of mixed disulphide adducts with thiol reagents". Protein Expr. Purif. 53 (1): 138–44. doi:10.1016/j.pep.2006.11.014. PMID17208454.