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Abstract
Most mitochondrial proteins are synthesized on cytosolic ribosomes and must be imported
across one or both mitochondrial membranes. There is an amazingly versatile set of
machineries and mechanisms, and at least four different pathways, for the importing
and sorting of mitochondrial precursor proteins. The translocases that catalyze these
processes are highly dynamic machines driven by the membrane potential, ATP, or redox
reactions, and they cooperate with molecular chaperones and assembly complexes to
direct mitochondrial proteins to their correct destinations. Here, we discuss recent
insights into the importing and sorting of mitochondrial proteins and their contributions
to mitochondrial biogenesis.