In molecular biology, immunophilins are endogenous cytosolic peptidyl-prolyl isomerases (PPI) that catalyze the interconversion between the cis and trans isomers of peptide bonds containing the amino acid proline (Pro).
They are chaperone molecules that generally assist in the proper folding of diverse "client" proteins.
[1] In 2005, a group of dual-family immunophilins (DFI) has been discovered, mostly in unicellular organisms; these DFIs are natural chimera of CyP and FKBPs, fused in either order (CyP-FKBP or FKBP-CyP).
Immunophilins also form protein complex with ryanodine and inositol triphosphate (IP3) which impacts the release of calcium.
Unlike regular peptide bonds, the X-Pro peptide bond does not adopt the intended trans conformation spontaneously, thus, cis-trans isomerization can be the rate-limiting (slowest) step in the process of protein folding.