Aporeceptor complex

In the absence of steroid hormones, the receptors remain in an inactive complex, designated the aporeceptor complex. In the aporeceptor complex the receptor is bound to proteins belonging to the chaperone dass. Chaperones are proteins whose levels are increased as a result of a stress situation, such as a rise in ambient temperature. The chaperones assume a central function in the folding process of proteins in the cell. Chaperones aid proteins in avoiding incorrectly folded states. They partidpate in the folding of proteins during and after ribosomal protein biosynthesis, during membrane transport of proteins, and in the correct assembly of protein complexes. 

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