NADH Dehydrogenase Ubiquinone 1 Alpha Subcomplex Assembly Factor 3 (NDUFaF3)

NDUFAF3 was predominantly localized to mitochondria and remained in the pellet after carbonate extraction, suggesting a strong interaction with the mitochondrial membrane, although NDUFAF3 has no predicted transmembrane helices. Localization appeared identical to that of NDUFAF4. RNA interference studies indicated that the NDUFAF3 gene product is necessary for mitochondrial complex I assembly.

The activity of NDUFAF3 showed functional interdependence with NDUFAF4. Gene conservation analysis linked NDUFAF3 to the bacterial-membrane-insertion gene cluster SecF/SecD/YajC and C8ORF38, suggesting a translation-dependent early assembly mechanism.