Invitrogen™ SURF1 Polyclonal Antibody

The SURF-1 protein demonstrates a vital role in the assembly of complex IV (CIV or COX) of the mitochondrial respiratory chain. Expressed in the inner mitochondrial membrane, mutations of the SURF-1 gene generally cause cytochrome c oxidase complex IV deficiency. Shortage of complex IV leads to Leigh syndrome, a severe neurological disorder. Leigh syndrome patients are usually subject to rapidly progressive encephalopathy, characterized by necrotic lesions in subcortical brain regions. SURF-1 mutations correlate to high post-implantation embryonic lethality as well as early-onset mortality of post-natal individuals. Considerable deficit in muscle strength and motor performance is also a profound and isolated defect of SURF-1 activity in skeletal muscle and liver. Heart, brain and skeletal muscle morphological abnormalities frequently occur due to SURF-1 mutations.