Considerable evidence has accumulated indicating that the multidrug transporter or P-glycoprotein plays a role in the development of simultaneous resistance to multiple cytotoxic drugs in cancer cells. In recent years, various approaches such as mutational analyses and biochemical and pharmacological characterization have yielded significant information about the relationship of structure and function of P-glycoprotein. However, there is still considerable controversy about the mechanism of action of this efflux pump and its function in normal cells. This review summarizes current research on the structure-function analysis of P-glycoprotein, its mechanism of action, and facts and speculations about its normal physiological role.

SummaryDirectional transport of the phytohormone auxin is required for the establishment and maintenance of plant polarity, but the underlying molecular mechanisms have not been fully elucidated. Plant homologs of human multiple drug resistance/P-glycoproteins (MDR/PGPs) have been implicated in auxin transport, as defects in MDR1 (AtPGP19) and AtPGP1 result in reductions of growth and auxin transport in Arabidopsis (atpgp1, atpgp19), maize (brachytic2) and sorghum (dwarf3). Here we examine the localization, activity, substrate specificity and inhibitor sensitivity of AtPGP1. AtPGP1 exhibits non-polar plasma membrane localization at the shoot and root apices, as well as polar localization above the root apex. Protoplasts from Arabidopsis pgp1 leaf mesophyll cells exhibit reduced efflux of natural and synthetic auxins with reduced sensitivity to auxin efflux inhibitors. Expression of AtPGP1 in yeast and in the standard mammalian expression system used to analyze human MDR-type proteins results in enhanced efflux of indole-3-acetic acid (IAA) and the synthetic auxin 1-naphthalene acetic acid (1-NAA), but not the inactive auxin 2-NAA. AtPGP1-mediated efflux is sensitive to auxin efflux and ABC transporter inhibitors. As is seen in planta, AtPGP1 also appears to mediate some efflux of IAA oxidative breakdown products associated with apical sites of high auxin accumulation. However, unlike what is seen in planta, some additional transport of the benzoic acid is observed in yeast and mammalian cells expressing AtPGP1, suggesting that other factors present in plant tissues confer enhanced auxin specificity to PGP-mediated transport.