# Metallochaperones
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'''Metallochaperones''' are a distinct class of [molecular chaperone](/source/Chaperone_(protein))s that facilitate the intracellular transport of [metal ions](/source/Metallome), such as [copper](/source/copper) and [zinc](/source/zinc), to different [metalloprotein](/source/metalloprotein)s, e.g., [metalloenzymes](/source/Metalloprotein), in [cells](/source/Cell_(biology)) through specific [protein-protein interactions](/source/Protein%E2%80%93protein_interaction).[{{Cite journal|last=Rosenzweig|first=Amy C|date=2002-06-01|title=Metallochaperones: Bind and Deliver|journal=Chemistry & Biology|volume=9|issue=6|pages=673–677|doi=10.1016/S1074-5521(02)00156-4|issn=1074-5521|doi-access=free|pmid=12079778 }}] In this way, for example, the proteins ensure that the correct metal ion [cofactor](/source/Cofactor_(biochemistry)) is acquired by its corresponding metalloenzyme.[{{cite journal
|journal=Science
|date=2003-05-09
|volume=300
|pages=931–6
|title=Transition metal speciation in the cell: insights from the chemistry of metal ion receptors
|vauthors=Finney LA, O'Halloran TV |doi=10.1126/science.1085049
|pmid=12738850
|issue=5621
|bibcode=2003Sci...300..931F
|s2cid=14863354
}}]
Metallochaperones are essential to the proper functioning of cells, playing a vital role in a large number of [biological process](/source/biological_process)es including, for example, [respiration](/source/Respiration_(physiology)), [photosynthesis](/source/photosynthesis), [neurotransmission](/source/neurotransmission), and [protein folding](/source/protein_folding).[{{Cite journal|url=http://www.eurekaselect.com/93873/article|title=Metallochaperones - an Overview|last=Sekhon|first=Bhupinder Singh|date=2010-05-01|journal=Current Chemical Biology|volume=4 |issue=2 |pages=173–186 |doi=10.2174/2212796811004020173 |language=en|access-date=2019-01-21|url-access=subscription}}]
Prior to the discovery of metallochaperones in the late 1990s, [biologist](/source/biologist)s believed that metal ions freely diffused within cells without the aid of auxiliary proteins.