Structure and function of BCRP, a broad specificity transporter of xenobiotics and endobiotics

The discovery and characterization of breast cancer resistance protein (BCRP) as an efflux transporter conferring multidrug resistance has set off a remarkable trajectory in the understanding of its role in physiology and disease. While the relevance in drug resistance and general pharmacokinetic properties quickly became apparent, the lack of a characteristic phenotype in genetically impaired animals and humans cast doubt on the physiological importance of this ATP-binding cassette family member, similarly to fellow multidrug transporters, despite well-known endogenous substrates. Later, high-performance genetic analyses and fine resolution tissue expression data forayed into unexpected territories concerning BCRP relevance, and ultimately, the rise of quantitative proteomics allows putting observed interactions into absolute frameworks for modeling and insight into interindividual and species differences. This overview summarizes existing knowledge on the BCRP transporter on molecular, tissue and system level, both in physiology and disease, and describes a selection of experimental procedures that are the most widely applied for the identification and characterization of substrate and inhibitor-type interactions.