Review

Nature Reviews Molecular Cell Biology 6, 599-609 (August 2005) | doi:10.1038/nrm1700

Ubiquitin and ubiquitin-like proteins as multifunctional signals

Rebecca L. Welchman1, Colin Gordon2 & R. John Mayer1  About the authors

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Protein ubiquitylation is a recognized signal for protein degradation. However, it is increasingly realized that ubiquitin conjugation to proteins can be used for many other purposes. Furthermore, there are many ubiquitin-like proteins that control the activities of proteins. The central structural element of these post-translational modifications is the ubiquitin superfold. A common ancestor based on this superfold has evolved to give various proteins that are involved in diverse activities in the cell.

Author affiliations

  1. School of Biomedical Sciences,University of Nottingham Medical School, Queen's Medical Centre, Nottingham, NG7 2UH, UK.
  2. MRC Human Genetics Unit, Western General Hospital, Crewe Road, Edinburgh, EH4 2XU, UK.

Correspondence to: R. John Mayer1 Email: John.Mayer@nottingham.ac.uk

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