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APOA1 (Apolipoprotein A-1) is a human protein with a specific role in lipid metabolism being the main protein component of HDL in the plasma. APOA1 promotes cholesterol efflux from tissues to the liver for excretion. Furthermore, APOA1 is a cofactor for LCAT, which is responsible for the formation of most plasma cholesteryl esters. In addition, APOA1 activates spermatozoa motility as part of the SPAP complex. The APOA1 gene is strongly linked with two other apolipoprotein genes on chromosome 11. Defects in the APOA1 gene are linked to HDL deficiency including Tangier disease, and with systemic non-neuropathic amyloidosis. High levels of APOA1 are linked to the manifestation of asthma and atopy.

Activins are homodimers or heterodimers of the different ? subunit isoforms, part of the TGF? family. Mature Activin A has two 116 amino acids residues betaA subunits (bA-bA). 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.

Plasminogen Activator Inhibitor-2 (Serpine2) which inhibits thrombin, plasmin and plasminogen activators is a part of the Serpin superfamily of the serine protease inhibitors. Serpine2 is able to transform human embryonic kidney cells into neuron-like cells. Furthermore, Serpine2's over expression in mice leads to progressive neuronal and motor dysfunction.

CHGB is a neuroendocrine secretory granule protein, that is the precursor for other biologically active peptides. CHGB is part of the chromogranin/secretogranin protein family and is expressed in the adrenal medulla, and in pheochromocytoma.

AP1S2 belongs to the adaptin protein family and functions as the small subunit of AP-1 complex 1 which is found in the cytoplasmic face of coated vesicles placed at the Golgi complex. AP-1 complex 1 facilitates both the necessity of clathrin to the membrane and the identification of organizing signals within the cytosolic tails of transmembrane receptors.

Darbepoetin is a mutant recombinant human EPO-Alpha protein re-engineered, containing 5 amino acid changes at N30, T32, V87, N88, T90. Darbepoetin exhibits longer half-life stimulating red blood cell production than Erythropoietin. Darbepoetin maintains hemoglobin more effectively compared to EPO-Alpha.

PPIases catalyze the cis-trans isomerization of proline imidic peptide bonds in oligopeptides and accelerate the folding of proteins. Cyclophilin-A is a cyclosporin binding-protein and may play a role in cyclosporin A-mediated immunosuppression. Cyclophilin-A can also interact with several HIV proteins, including p55 gag, Vpr, and capsid protein, and has been shown to be necessary for the formation of infectious HIV virions. Multiple pseudogenes that map to different chromosomes have been reported.

Albumin is synthesized in the liver as preproalbumin which has an N-terminal peptide that is removed before the nascent protein is released from the rough endoplasmic reticulum. The product, proalbumin, is in turn cleaved in the Golgi vesicles to produce the secreted albumin. Albumin is a soluble, monomeric protein which comprises about one-half of the blood serum protein. Albumin functions primarily as a carrier protein for steroids, fatty acids, and thyroid hormones and plays a role in stabilizing extracellular fluid volume. Mutations in this gene on chromosome 4 result in various anomalous proteins. Albumin is a globular unglycosylated serum protein of molecular weight 65,000. The human albumin gene is 16,961 nucleotides long from the putative 'cap' site to the first poly (A) addition site. It is split into 15 exons which are symmetrically placed within the 3 domains that are thought to have arisen by triplication of a single primordial domain.
HSA is widely used to stabilize blood volume generally from donors but the fear of contamination such as HIV & Hepatitis has enticed great interest in the recombinant form which is identical to the natural blood.

ATPaseTransporting Beta 3 (ATP1B3) is a member of the X(+)/potassium ATPases subunit beta family. ATP1B3 is the non-catalytic component of the active enzyme, which catalyzes the hydrolysis of ATP coupled with the exchange of Na+ and K+ ions across the plasma membrane. The beta subunit controls, by way of assembly of alpha/beta heterodimers, the quantity of sodium pumps transported to the plasma membrane. The precise role of the beta-3 subunit is unknown.

Collagen, a major component of the extracellular matrix, is a fibrous protein that provides tensile strength to tissues giving them structural integrity. Collagen and its derivative, gelatin, have been widely used in medical, pharmaceutical and consumer products for more than 100 years. The supply of these materials, created from animal remains, is both abundant and inexpensive. However, most formulations are not highly purified and have the potential to cause an inflammatory reaction in some product users. In addition, concerns have been raised over the last several years about the potential for contamination of bovine products with the agent that causes mad cow disease and its human variant, Creutzfeldt-Jakob Disease. Animal collagens are subject to extensive modifications that continue over the life of the molecule in the extracellular space. These differences influence both the extractability of collagens from tissue and the biophysical characteristics of these collagens. As a result, collagens isolated from tissues exhibit significant lot-to-lot variability and, as bulk materials, are often analytically intractable. Products that contain animal-derived collagen can induce potentially harmful inflammatory or immune responses in humans and pose risk of contamination with viruses or prions, potentially life-threatening pathogens. Recombinant collagens are essentially identical to the native collagen protein thereby reducing the risk of inflammation, immune response, and disease as compared to animal-sourced collagen.

Lamin-A is a major component of the nuclear lamina, a dynamic meshwork located just under the nuclear envelope and it is encoded by lamin A/C gene (LMNA).
Lamin-A is synthesized as Prelamin A, a longer precursor that in vivo goes through a serial post-translational modifications that lead to mature Lamin A.
Diverse mutations in the Lamin A/C gene are associated with different diseases that are collectively called laminophaties, including Emery-Dreifuss muscular dystrophy, familiar partial lipodystrophy, limb girdle muscular dystrophy, dilated cardiomyopathy, Charcot-Marie-Tooth disease, and Hutchinson-Gilford progeria syndrome.

Nucleobindin-2 (also known as NUCB2 or Nesfatin) is a EF-hand calcium-binding protein. Nucleobindin-2 takes part in calcium homeostasis and is a multifunctional protein that interacts with Ca(2+) nucleic acids & various regulatory proteins in different signaling pathways. NUCB2 (Nesfatin) is localized in neuronal perikarya and dendrites of mouse brain.

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.

Regulated upon Activation, Normal T-cell Expressed, and Secreted or RANTES is an 8 kDa protein classified as a chemotactic cytokine or chemokine. Rantes has recently been renamed CCL5. RANTES is chemotactic for T cells, eosinophils and basophils and plays an active role in recruiting leukocytes into inflammatory sites. With the help of particular cytokines (i.e. IL-2 and IFN-g) that are released by T cells, RANTES also induces the proliferation and activation of certain natural killer (NK) cells to form CHAK (CC-Chemokine-activated killer) cells. Rantes is also an HIV-suppressive factor released from CD8+ T cells. The Rantes chemokine has been localized to chromosome 17 in humans.

Troponin Complex is a heteromeric protein playing an important role in the regulation of skeletal and cardiac muscle contraction. It consists of three subunits, Troponin I, Troponin T and TroponinC. Each subunit is responsible for part of Troponin Complex function. E.g. Troponin I inhibits ATP-ase activity of acto-myosin.Troponin T and Troponin Iare presented in cardiac muscles in different forms than in skeletal muscles. Purified subunits of rcTnI, rcTnC and rcTnT are recomplexed in vitro under appropriate conditions.

Vaspin (visceral adipose-specific SERPIN) is a newly identified adipokine, which is a member of serine protease inhibitor family. Vaspin is also a unique insulin sensitizing adipocytokine in obesity. A recent publication indicates that induction of human vaspin mRNA expression in adipose tissue is regulated in a fat depot-specific manner and could be associated with parameters of obesity, insulin resistance, and glucose metabolism.

Serpin Peptidase Inhibitor, Clade B Member 3, also known as SERPINB3 is a papain-like cysteine protease inhibitor which modulates the host immune response versus tumor cells. SERPINB3 is a protein coding gene which acts as an inhibitor of UV-induced apoptosis by suppressing the activity of c-Jun NH(2)-terminal kinase (JNK1).

Signal-Regulatory Protein Gamma (SIRPG) belongs to the signal-regulatory protein (SIRP) family whose members are receptor-type transmembrane glycoproteins which negatively regulate the receptor tyrosine kinase-coupled signaling processes. SIRPG is also a part of the immunoglobulin superfamily.

PRKAB2 is a regulatory subunit of the AMP-activated protein kinase (AMPK). AMPK is a heterotrimer contains an alpha catalytic subunit and non-catalytic beta and gamma subunits. AMPK is a significant energy-sensing enzyme that supervises cellular energy status. AMPK is activated as a reply to cellular metabolic stresses, therefore phosphorylates and inactivates acetyl-CoA carboxylase (ACC) and beta-hydroxy beta-methylglutaryl-CoA reductase (HMGCR), vital enzymes involved in regulating de novo biosynthesis of fatty acid and cholesterol. PRKAB2 is a positive regulator of AMPK activity and highly expressed in skeletal muscle.

Fractalkine soluble form is chemotactic for t-cells and monocytes, but not for neutrophils. Fractalkine membrane-bound form promotes adhesion of those leukocytes to endothelial cells. Fractalkine regulates leukocyte adhesion and migration processes at the endothelium and binds to CX3CR1. Fractalkine gene is located on human chromosome 16 along with some CC chemokines known as CCL17 and CCL22.

Alpha crystallins are composed of two gene products; alpha-A and alpha-B, for acidic and basic, respectively. Alpha crystallins can be induced by heat shock and are members of the small heat shock protein (sHSP also known as the HSP20). They act as molecular chaperones and hold them in in large soluble aggregates. These heterogeneous aggregates consist of 30-40 subunits; the alpha-A and alpha-B subunits have a 3:1 ratio, respectively. Two additional function of -crystallins are an autokinase activity and participation in the intracellular architecture. Alpha-B is expressed widely in many tissues and organs and occurs in many neurological diseases.

Clusterin also named Apolipoprotein J (APO-J) is a 75-80 kD disulfide-linked heterodimeric protein containing about 30% of N-linked carbohydrate rich in sialic acid but truncated forms targeted to the nucleus have also been identified.
The precursor polypeptide chain is cleaved proteolytically to remove the 22-mer secretory signal peptide and subsequently between residues 227/228 to generate the a and b chains. These are assembled in anti-parallel to give a heterodimeric molecule in which the cysteine-rich centers are linked by five disulfide bridges and are flanked by two predicted coiled-coil a-helices and three predicted amphipathic a-helices.
Across a broad range of species clusterin shows a high degree of sequence homology ranging from 70% to 80%. It is nearly ubiquitously expressed in most mammalian tissues and can be found in plasma, milk, urine, cerebrospinal fluid and semen.
It is able to bind and form complexes with numerous partners such as immunoglobulins, lipids, heparin, bacteria, complement components, paraoxonase, beta amyloid, leptin and others. Clusterin has been ascribed a plethora of functions such as phagocyte recruitment, aggregation induction, complement attack prevention, apoptosis inhibition, membrane remodeling, lipid transport, hormone transport and/or scavenging, matrix metalloproteinase inhibition.
A genuine function of clusterin has not been defined. One tempting hypothesis says that clusterin is an extracellular chaperone protecting cells from stress induced insults caused by degraded and misfolded protein precipitates.
Clusterin is up- or down regulated on the mRNA or protein level in many pathological and clinically relevant situations including cancer, organ regeneration, infection, Alzheimer disease, retinitis pigmentosa, myocardial infarction, renal tubular damage, autoimmunity and others.

Tri a 14.0101 is a non-specific lipid transfer protein and a major wheat allergen. Those who are sensitive to this allergen may have baker’s asthma, a frequent occupational allergic disease caused mainly by inhalation of cereal flour, especially wheat flour. Tri a 14.0101 consists of 4 helical fragments and irregular C-terminal regions which are highly stable to heat treatment and proteolytic attack.