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Haptoglobin is a glycoprotein which is synthesized in the liver and circulates in the blood. Haptoglobin is produced typically by hepatocytes but also by other tissues: e.g. skin, lung, and kidney. It is a positive acute phase protein that binds free hemoglobin and removes it from the circulation to prevent kidney injury, and iron loss following hemolysis. The haptoglobin-hemoglobin complex is subsequently removed by the reticuloendothelial system (generally the spleen). As the reticuloendothelial system removes the haptoglobin-hemoglobin complex from the body, haptoglobin levels are reduced in hemolytic anaemias. In the course of binding hemoglobin, haptoglobin sequesters the iron inside hemoglobin, preventing iron-utilizing bacteria from benefitting from hemolysis.
Haptoglobin consists of two A- and two B-chains, connected by disulfide bonds. Three major haptoglobin phenotypes are known to exist (Hp 1-1, Hp 2-1, and Hp 2-2). Hp 1-1 is biologically the most effective in binding free hemoglobin and suppressing inflammatory responses associated with free hemoglobin. Hp 2-2 is biologically the least active, and Hp 2-1 is moderately active. Haptoglobin’s molecular mass ranges from 8-200 kDa.
Reduced levels can be seen in haemolysis and impaired liver function. High levels are a marker for acute or chronic inflammation. Ahaptoglobinemia or hypohaptoglobinemia are caused by mutations in the haptoglobin gene and/or its regulatory regions. Haptoglobin is also linked to diabetic nephropathy, the incidence of coronary artery disease in type 1 diabetes, Crohn's disease, inflammatory disease behavior, primary sclerosing cholangitis, susceptibility to idiopathic Parkinson's disease, and a reduced incidence of Plasmodium falciparum malaria.

SKP1 is a F-box enzyme which functions as a substrate recognition component of the SCF ubiquitin ligase complex which controls the ubiquitination of proteins involved in cell cycle progression, signal transduction and transcription. SKP1 binds to proteins containing an F-box motif, such as cyclin F, S-phase kinase-associated protein 2, and other regulatory proteins involved in ubiquitin dependent proteolysis. SKP1 takes part in the control of beta-catenin levels and the activity of beta-catenin dependent TCF transcription factors. SKP1 serves as an adapter that links the F-box protein to CUL1 in the SCF complex.

TAGLN is a transformation and form-change responsive actin cross-linking/gelling protein that is part of the calponin family. TAGLN is expressed abundantly in fibroblasts and smooth muscle. TAGLN participates in calcium interactions and contractile properties of the cell that contribute to replicative senescence. Throughout embryogenesis, TAGLN is expressed in smooth, cardiac and skeletal muscle, but is limited during late fetal growth and adulthood to all vascular and visceral smooth muscle cells and low levels of expression in heart. TAGLN is downregulated in several transformed cell lines, showing that a decrease of TAGLN expression is an premature indicator of the onset of transformation.

R-spondin-3 (RSPO3) belongs to the thrombospondin type 1 repeat supergene family. RSPO3 is a secreted protein which is widely expressed in many tissues. RSPO3 contains 2 Furin-like repeats which have been found in various eukaryotic proteins involved in the mechanism of signal transduction by receptor tyrosine kinases, and one TSP type-1 domain. RSPO3 acts as an activator of the beta-catenin signaling cascade, initiating TCF-dependent gene activation.

CST9 belongs to the CRES (cystatin-related epididymal spermatogenic) subfamily. The CRES (cystatin-related epididymal spermatogenic) protein outlines a new subgroup in the family 2 cystatins of the cystatin superfamily. A few members are active cysteine protease inhibitors, however others have lost or possibly never developed this inhibitory activity. CST9 takes part in hematopoietic differentiation or inflammation and is expressed in heart, placenta, lung, liver, skeletal muscle and pancreas. CST9 is upregulated by LPS in several cancer cell lines, such as promyelocytic leukemia (HL-60) and myelomonocytic leukemia.

Activins are homodimers or heterodimers of the different β subunit isoforms, part of the TGFβ family. Mature Activin A has two 116 amino acids residues βA subunits (βA-βA). Activin displays an extensive variety of biological activities, including mesoderm induction, neural cell differentiation, bone remodelling, haematopoiesis, and reproductive physiology. Activins takes part in the production and regulation of hormones such as FSH, LH, GnRH and ACTH. Cells that are identified to express Activin A include fibroblasts, endothelial cells, hepatocytes, vascular smooth muscle cells, macrophages, keratinocytes, osteoclasts, bone marrow monocytes, prostatic epithelium, neurons, chondrocytes, osteoblasts, Leydig cells, Sertoli cells, and ovarian granulosa cells.

MMP-3 enzyme is also known as Stromelysin-1or as Transin-1 which hydrolyzes natural collagen at physiological pH and temperature. It dissolves the intervertebral nucleus pulposus and annulus fibrosus of Herniated Lumbar Intervertebral Disk . MMP-3 hydrolyzes components of the extracellular matrix like proteoglycan, laminin, fibronectin, gelatin and collagen types III, IV and IX. It also activates pro-MMP-9 and pro-MMP-8 and superactivates plasmin activated MMP-1. MMP-3 is secreted as a latent proenzyme and is activated by a variety of proteinases, e.g. plasmin, trypsin, chymotrypsin, cathepsin G or human neutrophil elastase. MMP-3 was found to be capable of activating the precursor of IL1-beta.

MMP10 (Matrix Metallopeptidase 10) which is a part of the matrix metalloproteinase (MMP) is activating procollagenase. MMP10 is part of a cluster of MMP genes which localize to chromosome 11q22.3. MMP10 takes part in the breakdown of extracellular matrix in normal physiological processes, like embryonic development, reproduction, and tissue remodeling, as also in disease processes, such as arthritis and metastasis. The majority MMP's are secreted as inactive proproteins that are activated when cleaved by extracellular proteinases. MMP10 encodes an enzyme which degrades proteoglycans and fibronectin.

Mouse CXCL16 is a nonELR motif including CXC chemokine with a transmembrane domain. Mouse CXCL16 cDNA encodes a 246 a.a. precursor protein with a putative 26 a.a. residue signal peptide, an 88 a.a. residue chemokine domain, an 87 a.a. residue mucinlike spacer region, a 22 a.a. residue transmembrane domain, and a 23 a.a. residue cytoplasmic tail.
CXCL16 induces a strong chemotactic response and calcium mobilization. Furthermore, CXCL16 acts as a scavenger receptor on macrophages, which specifically binds to OxLDL (oxidized low density lipoprotein), suggesting that it may be involved in pathophysiology such as atherogenesis.
Mouse CXCL16 is generated by dendritic cells in lymphoid organ T cell zones as well as by cells in the splenic red pulp both as membranebound and soluble forms. CXCR6/Bonzo (STRL33 and TYMSTR) is the receptor for CXCL16. CXCL16 is expressed in the spleen, lymph nodes, and Peyer patches. It is also expressed in non-lymphoid tissues such as lung, kidney, small intestine, and thymus, with weak expression in heart and liver and no expression in brain and purified B- and T-cells.
CXCL16 deficiency is linked to breast cancer progression. In addition, CXCL16 is involved in immunological liver injury by regulating T lymphocyte infiltration in liver tissue. Furtheremore, CXCL16 has a distinctive role in the maintenance of cardiac allograft tolerance mediated by natural killer T cells. Moreover, CXCL16 has a significant role in not only the production of IFN-gamma by NKT cells, but also promotion of Th1-inclined immune responses mediated by NKT cells.

Metallothionein 3 (MT3) contains 3 zinc and 3 copper atoms per polypeptide chain and a minor amount of cadmium. MT3 inhibits survival and neurite formation of cortical neurons in vitro. MT3 also binds heavy metals.

DDX39A which is a part of the DEAD box protein family is characterized by the conserved motif Asp-Glu-Ala-Asp. This pattern is implicated in a various cellular processes involving alteration of RNA secondary structure, nuclear and mitochondrial splicing, and ribosome and spliceosome assembly. Several members of the DEAD box protein family are taking part in embryogenesis, spermatogenesis, and cellular growth and division.

ASB13 belongs to the ankyrin repeat and SOCS box-containing (ASB) family of proteins which contains ankyrin repeat sequence and a SOCS box domain. ASB13 is a protein coding gene that plays a role as a substrate-recognition part of a SCF-like ECS E3 ubiquitin-protein ligase complex which arbitrates the ubiquitination and subsequent proteasomal degradation of target proteins.

EMAP-II also called SCYE1 is a tumor derived cytokine that plays a role in a wide variety of activities on endothelial cells, monocytes and neutrophils. EMAP-II inhibits endothelial cell proliferation, vasculogenesis, neovessel formation, and can induce apoptosis. It is also chemotactic towards neutrophils and monocytes and induces myeloperoxidase activity from neutrophils. EMAP-II clinical value is inhibiting angiogenesis of vascular beds and suppressing the growth of primary and secondary tumors with no affect to normal tissues. SCYE1is specifically induced by apoptosis, and it is involved in the control of angiogenesis, inflammation, and wound healing. The release of this SCYE1 renders the tumor-associated vasculature sensitive to tumor necrosis factor. The precursor protein is identical to the p43 subunit, which is associated with the multi-tRNA synthetase complex, and it modulates aminoacylation activity of tRNA synthetase in normal cells. EMAP-2 plays a role in in the stimulation of inflammatory responses after proteolytic cleavage in tumor cells.

Oligonucleotide Binding Fold Containing 1 (OBFC1) is a part of the CST complex, a complex which binds to single-stranded DNA and is essential to defend telomeres from DNA degradation. The CST complex binds single-stranded DNA with high affinity in a sequence-independent way, whereas isolated subunits bind DNA with low affinity by themselves. The role of the CST complex is less specific in DNA metabolism at non-telomeric sites.

Profilin-1 also known as Pfn1 is a ubiquitous actin monomer-binding protein which is a member of the profilin family. Pfn1 significantly enhances skin wound healing in-vitro as well as in-vivo which is mediated by purinergic receptors. Furthermore, Pfn1 is also active in endothelial cell migration and vessel sprouting. Pfn1 is considered to regulate actin polymerization in response to extracellular signals.

Fibroblast Growth Factor Binding Protein 1, also known as FGFBP1 is a secreted fibroblast growth factor carrier protein. FGFBP1 plays a vital part in cell proliferation, differentiation and migration by binding to fibroblast growth factors and potentiating their biological effects on target cells. In addition, FGFBP1 also takes part in tumor growth as an angiogenic switch molecule, furthermore an expression of FGFBP1 has been associated with more than a few types of cancer as well as pancreatic and colorectal adenocarcinoma.

CRAHSP1 is a serine phosphoprotein initially identified as a physiological substrate for the Ca2+-calmodulin regulated protein phosphatase calcineurin (PP2B). CRAHSP1 interacts with the STYX/dead phosphate protein in developing spermatids and is a paralog of the brain-specific mRNA-binding protein PIPPIN. It is believed to have a common role in calcium-mediated signal transduction resulting from phosphorylation on serine residues.

PHOSPHO1 is involved in mineralization process & plays a role in bone and cartilage matrix mineralization.
PHOSPHO1 is expressed at sites of mineralization in bone and cartilage. Highly expressed in osteoblast cell line SaOS-2 which produces a mineralized matrix.
Orphan-1 is collagen type -2 is specific for cartilaginous tissues. Orphan1 is essential for the normal embryonic development of the skeleton, for linear growth and for the ability of cartilage to resist compressive forces.
Phosphoethanolamine (2-O3POCH2CH2NH3) is a key intermediate in the formation of cephalins, it is formed in liver and brain by phosphorylation of ethanolamine.
PHOSPHO2 and PHOSPHO1 suggest subtle differences in the charge distributions around the putative substrate entry site and in the location of potential H-bond donors.
PHOSPHO1 exhibits high specific phosphoethanolamine and phosphocholine phosphatase activities PHOSPHO1 is a phosphatase enzyme for which expression is upregulated in mineralizing cells. PHOSPHO1 has been implicated in the generation of Pi for matrix mineralization, a process central to skeletal development. PHOSPHO1 is a member of the haloacid dehalogenase (HAD) superfamily of Mg2+-dependent hydrolases. PHOSPHO1 exhibits high specific activities toward phosphoethanolamine (PEA) and phosphocholine (PCho).

Cytokeratin 5 (KRT5) belongs to the keratin gene family. The type II cytokeratins are comprised of basic or neutral proteins which are arranged in pairs of heterotypic keratin chains coexpressed throughout differentiation of simple and stratified epithelial tissues. The type II cytokeratins are clustered in a region of chromosome 12q12-q13. The KRT5 type II cytokeratin is specifically expressed in the basal layer of the epidermis with family member KRT14. Mutations in these genes are linked with a complex of diseases termed epidermolysis bullosa simplex.

LAIR1 is a glycoprotein (~32kDa) expressed on the surface of the majority of human peripheral blood mononuclear leukocytes including T cells, B cells, NK cells, macrophages and dendritic cells. LAIR-1 functions as an inhibitory receptor in NK cells, T cells and B cells. Inhibitory receptors control the immune response to prevent lysis of cells recognized as self. Lair1 consists of a leader sequence, extracellular domain, transmembrane domain, cytoplasmic region.
LAIR1 is a member of both the immunoglobulin superfamily and the leukocyte-associated inhibitory receptor family. LAIR1 maps to a region of 19q13.4 labeled the leukocyte receptor cluster, which contains at least 29 genes encoding leukocyte-expressed receptors of the immunoglobulin superfamily.

Gastric Inhibitory Polypeptide (GIP) which is a significant hormone of the enteroinsular axis has a functional profile of possible therapeutic value for type 2 diabetes. GIP is an important incretin hormone released into the circulation from endocrine K-cells of the duodenum and jejunum after ingestion of food1. GIP was evaluated for his ability to elevate cellular cAMP production. GIP promotes plasma triglyceride clearance in response to oral fat loading.

The galectins are a family of beta-galactoside-binding proteins implicated in modulating cell-cell and cell-matrix interactions. Galectin-1 is an autocrine negative growth factor that regulates cell proliferation. Galectin-1 regulates cell apoptosis and cell differentiation. Galectin-1 binds CD45, CD3 and CD4 & inhibits CD45 protein phosphatase activity and therefore the dephosphorylation of lyn kinase. Galectin-1 and its ligands are one of the master regulators of immune responses as T-cell homeostasis and survival, T-cell immune disorders, inflammation and allergies as well as host–pathogen interactions. Galectin-1 expression or overexpression in tumors and/or the tissue surrounding them must be considered as a sign of the malignant tumor progression that is often related to the long-range dissemination of tumoral cells (metastasis), to their dissemination into the surrounding normal tissue, and to tumor immune-escape. Galectin-1 in its oxidized form plays a number of important roles in the regeneration of the central nervous system after injury. The targeted overexpression (or delivery) of Galectin-1 should be considered as a method of choice for the treatment of some kinds of inflammation-related diseases, neurodegenerative pathologies and muscular dystrophies. In contrast, the targeted inhibition of Galectin-1 expression is what should be developed for therapeutic applications against cancer progression. Galectin-1 is thus a promising molecular target for the development of new and original therapeutic tools. There is 88% homology between the human and mouse galectin-1.

Galectins are a family of animal lectins with an affinity for beta-galactosides. This family has at least 14 identified members. Galectins share similarities in the CRD (the carbohydrate recognition domain). Galectins are synthesized as cytosolic proteins. Though localized principally in the cytoplasm and lacking a classical signal peptide, galectins can also be stimulated to secretion by non-classical pathways or alternatively targeted to the nucleus. Galectins are involved in modulating cell-cell and cell-matrix interactions. Human Galectin-7 belongs to the prototypical Galectins containing a single CRD, which is initially identified in human epidermis as a monomer. The Galectin-7 expression is induced by tumor suppressor protein p53 and associated with apoptosis. Galectin-7 is a pro-apoptotic protein which functions intracellularlly upstream of JNK activation and mitochondrial cytochrome c release. The correlation of Galectin-7 with the UV-induced apoptosis of keratinocytes presents a critical mechanism in the maintenance of epidermal homeostasis. Human Galectin-7 is localized in both nucleus and cytoplasm.

Vasodilator-stimulated phosphoprotein (VASP) belongs to the Ena-VASP protein family. VASP is linked with filamentous actin formation and likely plays a widespread role in cell adhesion and motility. In addition, VASP may be involved in the intracellular signaling pathways which regulate integrin-extracellular matrix interactions.