抄録
Anfinsen's classical work demonstrated that refolding of many proteins from their denatured states is spontaneous process. In recent years, however, a number of proteins which are involved in folding of other proteins have been discovered. This family of proteins is termed molecular chaperones. In this article we discuss the structure and function of chaperonin, one of the well-studied molecular chaperones. Furthermore, an extending concept of molecular chaperones, "From the cradle to the grave" is introduced.