Protein Folding in the Endoplasmic Reticulum

Abstract

In this article, we will cover the folding of proteins in the lumen of the endoplasmic reticulum (ER), including the role of three types of covalent modifications: signal peptide removal, N-linked glycosylation, and disulfide bond formation, as well as the function and importance of resident ER folding factors. These folding factors consist of classical chaperones and their cochaperones, the carbohydrate-binding chaperones, and the folding catalysts of the PDI and proline cis–trans isomerase families. We will conclude with the perspective of the folding protein: a comparison of characteristics and folding and exit rates for proteins that travel through the ER as clients of the ER machinery.