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HCV is a small 50nm, enveloped, single-stranded, positive sense RNAvirus in the family Flaviviridae. HCV has a high rate of replication with approximately one trillion particles produced each day in an infected individual. Due to lack of proofreading by the HCV RNA polymerase, the HCV has an exceptionally high mutation rate, a factor that may help it elude the host's immune response. Hepatitis C virus is classified into six genotypes(1-6) with several subtypes within each genotype. The preponderance and distribution of HCV genotypes varies globally. Genotype is clinically important in determining potential response to interferon-based therapy and the required duration of such therapy. Genotypes 1 and 4 are less responsive to interferon-based treatment than are the other genotypes (2, 3, 5 and 6). HCV NS3 (genotype 1b) contains 2 domains which are serine protinase and helicase. C33c is a fragment of NS3 containing the most important epitopes recognized by HCV antibody.

Heparan Sulfate 3-O-Sulfotransferase 1 (HS3ST1), is sulfotransferase which uses 3'-phospho-5'-adenylyl sulfate (PAPS) to catalyze the transfer of a sulfo group to position 3 of glucosamine residues in heparan. HS3ST1 catalyzes the rate limiting step in the biosynthesis of heparan sulfate (HSact). This modification is a vital part in the biosynthesis of anticoagulant heparan sulfate since it concludes the structure of the antithrombin pentasaccharide binding site.

Type IV collagen is a major structural component of basement membranes. It is a multimeric protein composed of 3 alpha subunits, which are encoded by 6 different genes, alpha 1 through alpha 6. Each of these alpha subunits can form a triple helix structure with 2 other subunits to form type IV collagen. The Goodpasture syndrome is a condition in which autoantibodies bind to the collagen molecules in the basement membranes of alveoli and glomeruli. The epitopes that elicit these autoantibodies are restricted basically to the non-collagenous C-terminal domain of the protein. There are numerous alternative transcripts that appear to be unique to the human COL4A3 and alternative splicing is limited to the six exons that encode this C-terminal domain. COL4A3 is also linked to an autosomal recessive form of Alport syndrome. The mutations contributing to the Alport syndrome are also situated within the exons that encode this C-terminal region. COL4A3 is organized in a head-to-head conformation with another type IV collagen gene so that each gene pair shares a common promoter. Several exons of COL4A3 are interspersed with exons of an uncharacterized gene which is on the opposite strand.

AK3L1 is an affiliate of the adenylate kinase family of enzymes. AK3L1 enzyme is restricted to the mitochondrial matrix. Adenylate kinases-3 regulates the adenine and guanine nucleotide compositions within a cell by means of catalyzing the reversible transfer of phosphate group among these nucleotides. 5 different isozymes of adenylate kinase have been identified in vertebrates. The enzyme expression of various adenylate kinase isozymes is growth regulated and tissue-specific.

Ring Finger & CHY Zinc Finger Domain Containing 1 (RCHY1) acts as an ubiquitin ligase. RCHY1 mediates E3-dependent ubiquitination and proteasomal degradation of target proteins which among them are TP53, HDAC1 and CDKN1B, consequently regulating their levels and cell cycle progression. RCHY1 is also increases AR transcription factor activity.

Recombinant Fatty Acid Binding Protein is a newly introduced plasma marker of acute myocardial infarction (AMI). The plasma kinetics of FABP (15kD) closely resemble those of myoglobin in that elevated plasma concentrations are found within 2 hours after AMI and return to normal generally within 18 to 24 hours. But the concentration of FABP in the skeletal muscle is 20 times lower than in cardiac tissue (for myoglobin the same content for cardiac and skeletal tissue), that makes FABP to be more cardiac specific than myoglobin. This makes FABP a useful biochemical marker for the early assessment or exclusion of AMI. FABP also appears to be a useful plasma marker for the estimation of myocardial infarct size.

Troponin I (TnI), troponin T (TnT) and troponin C (TnC) form the troponin complex of the thin filaments of striated muscle. TnI acts as the inhibitory subunit by blocking actin-myosin interactions and thereby mediating striated muscle relaxation. The TnI subfamily contains 3 genes: TnI-skeletal-fast-twitch, TnI-skeletal-slow-twitch, and TnI-cardiac. The TNNI3 gene encodes the TnI-cardiac protein and isexpressed solely in cardiac muscle tissues. Mutations in the TNNI3 gene cause familial hypertrophic cardiomyopathy type 7 (CMH7) and familial restrictive cardiomyopathy (RCM).

Cystatins are a superfamily of cysteine proteinase inhibitors found in both plants and animals. They comprise a group of proteinase inhibitors, widely distributed in tissues and body fluids, and form tight complexes with cysteine proteases such as cathepsin B, H, L and S. Cystatin C, a secreted molecule of this family, is of interest from biochemical, medicine and evolutionary points of view. Cystatin C, with molecular weight of 13260 Da, is composed of 120 amino acids, lacks carbohydrate and has two disulfide bridges located near the carboxyl terminus. Cystatin C is increased in patients with malignant diseases, and is related to the insufficiency of renal function and appears to be a better marker than creatinine. On the other hand, low levels of cystatin C involve cause the breakdown of the elastic laminae and, subsequently, the atherosclerosis and abdominal aortic aneurysm.

CFD is an important component of the alternative pathway of complement activation. CFD cleaves and activates factor B when it binds C3b or a C3b-like protein such as C3 or CVF. CFD is a serine protease that exists as a mature protease, but it exhibits a highly restricted specificity and it appears to be substrate activated. CFD cleaves factor B bound to C3b leading to the release of the Ba fragment and leaving the Bb fragment bound to C3b. The C3b,Bb complex is called a C3 or C5 convertase because it converts these proteins to their active forms by cleaving off the small peptides C3a and C5a, respectively.

FLT3 ligand is a receptor for the fl cytokine has a tyrosine-protein kinase activity & a growth factor that regulates proliferation of early hematopoietic cells. Flt3-Ligand synergizes with other CSFs and interleukins to induce growth and differentiation.

Galectin-3 mediates with the alpha-3, beta-1 integrin the stimulation by cspg4 of endothelial cells migration. Galectin-3 plays an necessary part during the acquisition of vasculogenic mimicry and angiogenic properties associated with melanoma progression. LGALS3 overexpression is highly expressed in early stages of papillary carcinoma, and its expression intensity declines during tumor progression. Serum levels of LGALS3 are high in patients with thyroid malignancy but there is considerable overlap in serum LGALS3 concentrations between those with benign and malignant nodular thyroid disease. LGLAS3 takes part as an immune regulator to inhibit T-cell immune responses and promote tumor growth, as a result providing a new mechanism for tumor immune tolerance.

PIH1 domain-containing protein 1 (PIH1D1) is a member of the PIH1 family. PIH1D1 is a phylogenetically conserved protein vital for efficient processing of pre-rRNA through its association along with a class of small nucleolar RNAs (snoRNAs) during ribosomal biogenesis. SnoRNAs are linked in ribonucleoprotein particles localized to the nucleolus. PIH1D1 may also act as a novel modulator of apoptosis pathway.

LASP1 has a vital part in the regulation of dynamic actin-based, cytoskeletal activities. Agonist-dependent changes in LASP1 phosphorylation can additionally assist in regulation of actin-associated ion transport activities in the parietal cell and in several other F-actin-rich secretory epithelial cell types.

Tubulin, beta 3 class III (TUBB3), which is the major constituent of microtubules, is primarily Expressed in neurons and is involved in neurogenesis and in axon guidance and maintenance. TUBB3 binds two moles of GTP, one at an exchangeable site on the beta chain and one at a non-exchangeable site on the alpha-chain.

Coiled-Coil Domain Containing 43 (CCDC43) which is a member of the CCDC43 family is a human protein whose function is currently not understood. Coding sequence diversity are two isoforms produced by alternative splicing. Isoform 1 has been chosen as the 'canonical' sequence.

JmjC domain-containing protein 7 (JMJD7) is a member of the JMJD family. JMJD7 encodes highly conserved proteins with a JmjC domain, which are part of the cupin metalloenzyme superfamily. JMJD7 was first thought to be an alternatively spliced isoform of PLA2G4B. It is derived from JMJD7 which is located upstream of PLA2G4B. Most tissues also express read-through transcripts from JMJD7 into the downstream PLA2G4B gene, some of which may encode fusion proteins combining the N-terminus of JMJD7 with PLA2G4B protein.

PBLD is member of the phenazine biosynthesis-like protein (PhzF) family. PBLD which is expressed in most tissues is the only representative of the PhzF family in the human genome. PBLD participates in the MAPK signaling pathway. PBLD is involved in multiple basic cellular functions, its expression is elevated in several disease processes, including folate deficiency and hypotension.

DDIT3 reduces DNA-binding activity of C/EBP and lap by forming heterodimers which don’t bind DNA. DDIT3, also known as GADD153, is a basic domain-leucine zipper(bZIP) transcription factor of C/EBP family. DDIT3 protein is up-regulated by several stresses, such as amino acid or glucose starvation, endoplasmic reticulum (ER) stress, osmotic stress and hypoxia. DDIT3 protein is invloved in ER stress-mediated apoptosis and in disease including diabetes, brain ischemia and neurodegenerative disease. DDIT3 plays a role in asoprisnil-induced apoptosis. Hypoglycaemia-induced necrotic cell death of neuroblastoma cells is an active process mediated via the induction of the transcription factor DDIT3. DDIT3 plays an important role in melanoma progression. HRG stimulation of mammary epithelial cells induces the expression of DDIT3 mRNA and protein and transcription of DDIT3 promoter.

ErbB3, also called Her3 (human epidermal growth factor receptor 3), is a type I membrane glycoprotein that is a member of the ErbB family of tyrosine kinase receptors. ErbB family members serve as receptors for the epidermal growth factor (EGF) family of growth factors. Among ErbB family members, ErbB3 is unique in that it contains a defective kinase domain. ErbB3 is expressed in keratinocytes, melanocytes, skeletal muscle cells, embryonic myoblasts and Schwann cells. Monomeric ErbB3 serves as a low affinity receptor for the heregulins (HRG). ErbB3 can induce specific antibody production in vivo, hence to inhibit tumor cell growth. ErbB-3 can be used to treat early, medium and advanced or post-operative breast cancer with over-expression of ErbB2. According to its mechanism of action, ErbB3 is classified as a therapeutic for cancer.

Rab3A is a member of the small GTPase superfamily, Rab family. Rab3A is a small, Ras-like GTPase expressed in neuroendocrine cells, in which Rab3A is linked with secretory vesicle membranes and regulates exocytosis. Rab3A protein may have a role in neurotransmitter release by regulating membrane flow in the nerve terminal.

KCNIP3 belongs to a family of voltage-gated potassium (Kv) channel-interacting proteins, which belong to the recoverin branch of the EF-hand superfamily. KCNIP family members are small calcium binding proteins containing EF-hand-like domains. KCNIP3 also functions as a calcium-regulated transcriptional repressor, and interacts with presenilins. Mutations in the presenilin genes are implicated in Alzheimer's disease.

Dickkopf-related protein 3 (DKK3) belongs to the DKK protein family including Dkk-1, 2, 3 and -4. DKK3 is a 350 amino acid secreted glycoprotein which is comprised of an N-terminal signal peptide and 2 conserved cysteine-rich domains that are separated by a 12 amino acid linker region. DKK3 is involved in embryonic development through its inhibition of the WNT signaling pathway. DKK3 gene expression is decreased in a variety of cancer cell lines and it may act as a tumor suppressor gene.

IL3 is a potent growth promoting cytokine. This cytokine is capable of supporting the proliferation of a broad range of hematopoietic cell types. It is involved in a variety of cell activities such as cell growth, differentiation and apoptosis. This cytokine has been shown to also possess neurotrophic activity, and it may be associated with neurologic disorders.

Zinc Finger HIT-Type Containing 1 (ZNHIT1) is a member of the ZNHIT1 family and contains 1 HIT-type zinc finger. The ZNHIT1 protein is induced by DNA damage and appears to have a role in p53-mediated apoptosis induction. ZNHIT1 interacts with MAPK11 and MAPK14 and is a component of the chromatin-remodeling SRCAP complex composed of at least SRCAP, DMAP1, RUVBL1, RUVBL2, ACTL6A, YEATS4, ACTR6 and ZNHIT1. ZNHIT1 binds to NR1D2 and discharges it of its inhibitory effect on the transcription of APOC3 without affecting its DNA-binding activity.