Description
NADH-ubiquinone oxidoreductase 1 alpha subcomplex 1 is a subunit of mitochondrial NADH: ubiquinone oxidoreductase, also known as mitochondrial complex I. The NDUFA1 gene is mapped to chromosome Xq24. The deduced polypeptide sequence of NDUFA1 was found to have an N-terminal hydrophobic domain, likely to be a transmembrane domain, and a C-terminal hydrophilic domain. And the gene contains 3 exons and spans about 5.0 kb of genomic DNA. Complementation with hamster Ndufa1 cDNA restored the rotenone-sensitive complex I activity of these mutant cells to approximately 100% of the parent cell activity. The findings established that the protein is absolutely essential for an active complex I in mammals. The protein is one of about 31 components of the hydrophobic protein(HP) fraction of complex I which is involved in proton translocation