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AKR1B1 is part of the aldo/keto reductase superfamily, which consists of more than 40 known enzymes and proteins. AKR1B1 catalyzes the reduction several aldehydes, including the aldehyde form of glucose, and thus involved in the development of diabetic complications by catalyzing the reduction of glucose to sorbitol. AKR1B1 catalyzes the NADPH-dependent reduction of a wide variety of carbonyl-containing compounds to their corresponding alcohols. Transgenic mice over expressing human aldose reductase show that AKR1B1 is a key player in ischemic injury and impairment of functional and metabolic recovery after ischemia. Aldose Reductase is an obligatory mediator of TNF-alpha signaling leading to an increase in the expression of adhesion molecules and increased binding of monocytes to the endothelium. AKR1B1 is a critical regulator of TNF-alpha-induced apoptotic signaling in endothelial cells.

AKR1C1 transfers progesterone to its inactive state or in other words catalyzes the reaction of 20-alpha-hydroxy progesterone (20-alpha-OHP). In the liver and intestine. AKR1C1 transfers bile and monitors the intrahepatic bile acid concentration though it has a low bile-binding ability. AKR1C1 participates in myelin formation. AKR1C1 is part of the aldo/keto reductase superfamily, which has over 40 known enzymes which catalyze the conversion of aldehydes and ketones to their corresponding alcohols by utilizing NADH and/or NADPH as cofactors thus display overlapping but distinct substrate specificity.

CD138 takes a part in cell adhesion. CD138 is expressed on the surface of pre-B cells and plasma cells but is absent from mature B cells. SDC1 is a selective marker for B cell lymphoblastic leukemia and lymphoplasmacytoid leukemia. SDC1 is missing from the apoptotic myeloma cells; therefore is a valuable marker for plasma cell and myeloma cells.

SDF-1 (stromal cell-derived factor-1) is small cytokine belonging to the chemokine family that is officially designated Chemokine (C-X-C motif) ligand 12 (CXCL12). It is produced in two forms, SDF-1?/CXCL12a and SDF-1?/CXCL12b, by alternate splicing of the same gene. Chemokines are characterized by the presence of four conserved cysteines, which form two disulfide bonds. The CXCL12 proteins belong to the group of CXC chemokines, whose initial pair of cysteines are separated by one intervening amino acid. CXCL12 is strongly chemotactic for lymphocytes and has been implicated as an important cell co-ordinator during development. During embryogenesis it directs the migration of hematopoietic cells from foetal liver to bone marrow. Mice which were knocked-out for CXCL12 gene were lethal before the birth or within just 1 hour of life. As another role, CXCL12a alters also the electrophysiology of neurons. CXCL12 was shown to be expressend in many tissues in mice (including brain, thymus, heart, lung, liver, kidney, spleen and bone marrow).
The receptor for this chemokine is CXCR4, which was previously called fusin. This CXCL12-CXCR4 interaction used to be considered exclusive (unlike for other chemokines and their receptors), but recently it was suggested that CXCL12 is also bound by CXCR7 receptor.
The gene for CXCL12 is located on human chromosome 10. In human and mouse both CXCL12 and CXCR4 show high identity of sequence: 99% and 90%, respectively.

SH3-domain GRB2-like 2 (SH3GL2) is a member of the endophilin family. SH3GL2 contains a BAR domain and a SH3 domain. Members of the BAR domain protein superfamily are crucial elements of cellular traffic. Endophilins have a major function in synaptic vesicle endocytosis (SVE), receptor trafficking and apoptosis, and in other processes which require remodeling of the membrane structure. SH3GL2 is a novel tumor suppressor gene in laryngeal squamous cell carcinoma (LSCC), which induces apoptosis of tumor cells by regulating intra-cellular signal transduction networks. SH3GL2 is implicated in synaptic vesicle endocytosis. SH3GL2 is found in the brain, mainly in frontal cortex, and at high level in the fetal cerebellum.

Recombinant Human Sonic Hedgehog is part of a small group of secreted proteins that are vital for development in both vertebrates and invertebrates. 3 mammalian hedgehog genes (sonic, desert, Indian) share about 60% homology. The Human Sonic Hedgehog is 99% homologous to the mouse gene. Sonic HedgeHog is a protein that is vital in guding the early embryo. It has been associated as the major inductive signal in patterning of the ventral neural tube, the anterior-posterior limb axis, and the ventral somites. Sonic HedgeHog binds to the patched receptor, which functions in association with smoothened, to activate the transcription of target genes. In the absence of sonic HedgeHog, patched receptor represses the constitutive signaling activity of smoothened. Sonic HedgeHog also regulates another factor, the gli oncogene. Sonic HedgeHog intercellular signal is essential for a various patterning events during development: signal produced by the notochord that induces ventral cell fate in the neural tube and somites, and the polarizing signal for patterning of the anterior-posterior axis of the developing limb bud. Sonic HedgeHog exhibits both floor plate- and motor neuron-inducing activity. Mutations in a long-range Sonic HedgeHog enhancer located in an intron of the limb region 1 gene result in preaxial polydactyly.

SKP is a 17kDa trimeric periplasmic chaperone that supports outer membrane proteins in their folding and insertion into membranes. SKP protein is necessary for the normal release of ompA from the inner membrane, the maintenance of its solubility in the periplasm, and, in association with lipopolysaccharide (LPS), for the efficient folding and insertion of ompA into the outer membrane.

Dual-Specificity Tyrosine-(Y)-Phosphorylation Regulated 1A (DYRK1A) belongs to the dual-specificity tyrosine phosphorylation-regulated kinase (DYRK) family. DYRK1A includes a nuclear targeting signal sequence, a leucine zipper motif and a protein kinase domain. DYRK1A catalyzes its autophosphorylation on serine/threonine and tyrosine residues and takes part in a signaling pathway regulating cell proliferation. DYRK1A has a substrate preference for proline at position P+1 and arginine at position P-3.

Sclerostin Domain Containing 1 (SOSTDC1) belongs to the sclerostin family and an N-glycosylated, secreted protein with a C-terminal cystine knot-like domain. The SOSTDC1 protein acts as a bone morphogenetic protein (BMP) antagonist. Specifically, SOSTDC1 directly associates with BMPs, prohibiting them from binding their receptors, thus regulating BMP signaling throughout cellular proliferation, differentiation, and programmed cell death. SOSTDC1 may also be involved in the onset of endometrial receptivity for implantation/sensitization for the decidual cell reaction Enhances Wnt signaling and hinders TGF-beta signaling. In addition, SOSTDC1 directly antagonizes the activity of BMP2, BMP4, BMP6 and BMP7 in a dose-dependent manner.

NUDT2 belongs to the MutT family of nucleotide pyrophosphatases, a subset of the larger NUDIX hydrolase family. NUDT2 conserves homeostasis by using water to cleave the metabolite NUDT symmetrically back into its original ATP and AMP molecules. In addition, NUDT2 is active towards other adenosine and diadenosine polyphosphates with four or more phosphate groups, however, not towards diadenosine triphosphate. NUDT2 has a role in heat shock and metabolic stress by regulating intracellular dinucleoside polyphosphate concentrations.

Biliverdin reductase A (BLVRA) is a member of the gfo/idh/mocA family. BLVRA is an enzyme that converts biliverdin to bilirubin, converting a double-bond between the second and third pyrrole ring into a single-bond. BLVRA reduces the gamma-methene bridge of the open tetrapyrrole, biliverdin IX alpha, to bilirubin with the simultaneous oxidation of a NADH or NADPH cofactor (Bilirubin + NAD(P)+ = biliverdin + NAD(P)H ).
BLVRA is a regulator for induction of activating transcription factor-2 and heme oxygenase-1. Furthermore, BLVRA enhances the role of HO-1 in cytoprotection and provides cytoprotection independent of heme degradation. In addition, Bilirubin while acting as a cytoprotective antioxidant is itself oxidized to biliverdin and subsequently recycled by biliverdin reductase back to bilirubin.

BLVRB (EC 1.3.1.24) catalyzes electron transfer from reduced pyridine nucleotides to flavins as well as methylene blue, pyrroloquinoline quinone, riboflavin, or methemoglobin. BLVRB is involved in protecting cells from oxidative damage or in regulating iron metabolism. BLVRB converts biliverdin to bilirubin in the liver, converting a double-bond between the second and third pyrrole ring into a single-bond. BLVRB plays a role as in human erythrocytic heme catabolic pathway and most mammalian species. Biliverdin reductase is abundantly expressed in kidney, spleen, liver and brain as well as at lower levels in the thymus and minimal levels being detected in testis.

Epiregulin is part of the EGF family. Epiregulin functions as a ligand of EGFR, as well as a ligand of most members of the ERBB (v-erb-b2 oncogene homolog) family of tyrosine-kinase receptors.Epiregulin is expressed mostly in the placenta and peripheral blood leukocytes and in specific carcinomas of the bladder, lung, kidney and colon. Epiregulin stimulates the proliferation of keratinocytes, hepatocytes, fibroblasts and vascular smooth muscle cells. Epiregulin inhibits the growth of several tumor-derived epithelial cell lines. Human Epiregulin is initially synthesized as a glycosylated 19.0 kDa transmembrane precursor protein, which is processed by proteolytic cleavage to produce a 6.0 kDa mature secreted sequence.

PDCD5 is expressed in tumor cells during apoptosis independent of the apoptosis-inducing stimuli. Prior to apoptosis induction, PDCD5 is distributed in both the nucleus and cytoplasm. Once apoptosis is induced, the amount of PDCD5 increases and by relocation from the cytoplasm, it accumulates in the nucleus.PDCD5 protein has a stable helical core conformation consisting of a triple-helix bundle and two dissociated terminal regions. PDCD5 is an important novel protein that regulates both apoptotic and non-apoptotic programmed cell death. PDCD5 functions in the process of apoptosis.
PDCD5 plays an important role in regulation of apoptotic processes in gastric cancer cells and gastric tumors.
PDCD5 plays a role in the pathogenesis of rheumatoid arthritis.
-27G/-11A SNP is associated with reduced PDCD5 promoter activity and increased susceptibility to chronic myelogenous leukemia.
PDCD5 gene may be a target gene under the control of some important apoptosis-related transcriptional factors during the cell apoptosis.

TRAF2 protein is related with transduce signals from members of the TNFR superfamily. TRAF2 is located in the cytoplasm binds to TRAF1, TRAF2, or TRAF3, thus inhibiting TRAF function by sequestering the TRAFs in a suppressed state in the cytoplasm. Overexpression of TANK inhibits TRAF2-mediated NF-Kappa-B activation signaled by CD40 and both TNF receptors and inhibits LMP1-mediated NF-kappa-B activation by blocking the association of TRAF2 with LMP1. TRAF2 is necessary for the cellular response to TNF-alpha by connecting upstream signalling molecules to the IKKs and p65.

PDIA3 is an enzyme that belongs to the endoplasmic reticulum and interacts with lectin chaperones calreticulin and calnexin to modulate folding of newly synthesized glycoproteins. PDIA3 has protein disulfide isomerase activity. Complexes of lectins and PDIA3 mediate protein folding by promoting formation of disulfide bonds in their glycoprotein substrates. PDIA3 is expressed in the lumbar spinal cord from rats submitted to peripheral lesion during neonatal period. PDIA3 interacts with thiazide-sensitive sodium-chloride cotransporter in the kidney and is induced by glucose deprivation. PDIA3 is part of the major histocompatibility complex (MHC) class I peptide-loading complex (TAP1), which is important for formation of the final antigen conformation and export from the endoplasmic reticulum to the cell surface.

PDRG1 is a 133 amino acid protein that localizes to the cytoplasm and belongs to the prefoldin subunit beta family. PDRG1 is expressed primarily in normal testicular tissue, it is functionally induced by ultraviolet light and is thought to have a role in chaperone-mediated protein folding, possibly having a role in cellular degradation. PDRG1 is linked to Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, spinal muscular atrophy, ring chromosome 20 epilepsy syndrome and Alagille syndrome.

Carbonic anhydrases (CAs) are a large family of zinc metalloenzymes which catalyze the reversible hydration of carbon dioxide. These metalloenzymes participate in various biological processes, including respiration, calcification, acid-base balance, bone resorption, and the formation of aqueous humor, cerebrospinal fluid, saliva, and gastric acid. The metalloenzymes exhibit extensive diversity in tissue distribution and in their subcellular localization. Carbonic Anhydrase XI (CA11) is probably a secreted protein, nevertheless, drastic changes at active site residues completely conserved in CA isozymes with catalytic activity, make it unlikely that CA11 has carbonic anhydrase activity. CA11 shares properties in common with 2 other acatalytic CA isoforms, CA VIII and CA X. CA11 is amply expressed in the brain, and may have a general role in the central nervous system.

Proteins of the TFF family are characterized by obtaining a minimum of 1 copy of the trefoil motif, a 40-amino acid domain that contains 3 conserved disulfides. Trefoil Factors are stable secretory proteins expressed in gastrointestinal mucosa which protect the mucosa from insults, stabilize the mucus layer and affect healing of the epithelium.TFF2 inhibits gastric acid motility & secretion. TFF2 stabilizes glycoproteins in the mucus gel through interactions with carbohydrate side chains.

3-ketodihydrosphingosine reductase (KDSR) is a 332 amino acid multi-pass membrane protein which localizes to the ER and is a member of the short-chain dehydrogenases/reductases (SDR) family. KDSR is a secreted protein that is weakly expressed in hematopoietic tissue. Furthermore, KDSR catalyzes the reduction of 3-ketodihydrosphingosine (KDS) to dihydrosphingosine (DHS). The putative active site residues of KDSR are found on the cytosolic side of the endoplasmic reticulum membrane. Chromosomal rearrangement in the KDSR gene is a cause of follicular lymphoma, aka type II chronic lymphatic leukemia.

TNNT2 is the tropomyosin-binding subunit of the troponin complex, which is situated on the thin filament of striated muscles and regulates muscle contraction in response to alterations in intracellular calcium ion concentration. Mutations in TNNT2 gene are related with familial hypertrophic cardiomyopathy as well as with dilated cardiomyopathy. TNNT2 mutation takes part in hypertrophic cardiomyopathy.

TPPP3 is a member of the TPPP family and is found in the cytoplasm. TPPP3 binds tubulin, has microtubule bundling activity takes part in mitosis and cell proliferation.

CDC26 is a member of the CDC26 family which arranges progression via mitosis by enhancing cell-cycle regulators with ubiquitin chains. CDC26 is a component of the anaphase promoting complex/cyclosome (APC/C), which is a cell cycle-regulated E3 ubiquitin ligase which directs progression through mitosis and the G1 phase of the cell cycle. The APC/C complex operates by mediating ubiquitination and subsequent degradation of target proteins.

CDC37 is an essential protein in Saccharomyces cerevisiae and is a molecular chaperone with precise function in cell signal transduction. CDC37 forms a complex/associates with Hsp90 molecular chaperone as one of several auxiliary proteins that are collectively referred to as Hsp90 co-chaperones. CDC37 also forms complex with a number of protein kinases such as CDK4, CDK6, SRC, RAF-1, MOK, as well as eIF2 alpha kinases. CDC34 is involved in directing Hsp90 to its target kinases. CDC37 up-regulation is a common early event in some localized human cancers. CDC37 is necessary for maintaining prostate tumor cell growth and represents a novel target in the exploration for multitargeted therapies. CDC37 plays a role in regulating Hsp90 ATPase activity. CDC37 binds to Akt and HSP90 in the signal transduction pathway in human tumor cells. Tnf-induced recruitment and activation of the IKK complex require Cdc37 and Hsp90. CDC37 and heat shock protein 90 bind specifically to the kinase domain of LKB1.