Functional Specificity Among Hsp70 Molecular Chaperones

Molecular chaperones of the 70-kilodalton heat shock protein (Hsp70) class bind to partially unfolded polypeptide substrates and participate in a wide variety of cellular processes. Differences in peptide-binding specificity among Hsp70s have led to the hypothesis that peptide binding determines specific Hsp70 functions. Protein domains were identified that were required for two separate functions of a yeast Hsp70 family. The peptide-binding domain was not required for either of these specific Hsp70 functions, which suggests that peptide-binding specificity plays little or no role in determining Hsp70 functions in vivo.