9.A.24.1.13
TspO/MBR family member of 151 aas and 5 TMSs.  The crystal structure has been determined at 1.7 Å resolution (Guo et al. 2015).  The protein was solved in complex with the benzodiazepine-like inhibitor, PK11195. TspO-mediated protoporphyrin IX (PpIX) reactions were also described, including catalytic degradation to a previously undescribed heme derivative. Structure-inspired mutations allowed the investigation of the reaction mechanisms, showing that TSPOs from Xenopus and man have similar PpIX-directed activities. Although TSPOs have been regarded as transporters, the catalytic activity in PpIX degradation suggests physiological importance for TSPOs in protection against oxidative stress (Guo et al. 2015).