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KLRC3 belongs to the NKG2 group that can be found mostly in natural killer (NK) cells and encodes a family of transmembrane proteins known for their C-type lectin domain and their type II membrane orientation (extracellular C terminus). The NKG2 gene family is situated inside the NK complex, a region which has quite a few C-type lectin genes mostly expressed on NK cells.

The precise role of CFLAR is not yet revealed but it seems it is vital in apoptosis regulation downstream of all identified death receptors.

TFPI is a protease inhibitor which controls the tissue factor (TF)-dependent pathway of blood coagulation. The coagulation process starts with the creation of a factor VIIa-TF complex, that proteolytically triggers additional proteases (factors IX and X) and eventually results in a fibrin clot. TFPI inhibits the activated factor X and VIIa-TF proteases in an autoregulatory loop. TFPI is glycosylated and predominantly located in the vascular endothelium and plasma in both free forms and complexed with plasma lipoproteins. A number of alternatively spliced transcript variants of this gene have are known, however the full-length nature of several of these variants were not yet established.

Pirin (PIR) which belongs to the cupin superfamily, is an Fe(II)-containing nuclear protein expressed in all tissues of the body and concentrated within dot-like subnuclear structures. Pirin may function as a transcriptional cofactor and is involved in the regulation of DNA transcription and replication, as a result of interactions with nuclear factor I/CCAAT box transcription factor as well as B cell lymphoma 3-encoded oncoprotein.

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.

Mps one binder kinase activator-like 3 (MOBKL3) is a member of the MOB1/Phocein family and is phosphorylated on serine residues. MOBKL3 is usually linked with membranes but can be present in the cytosol, where it behaves as a protein complex. MOBKL3 is the major partner of the striatin family members, which are scaffolding proteins involved in signaling and trafficking.

Amino-terminal enhancer of split (AES) is a member of the groucho/TLE family of proteins. AES can function as a homooligomer or as a heteroologimer with other family members in order to forcefully repress the expression of other family member genes. Furthermore, AES can repress NFkB-regulated gene expression and is believed to have a significant role in initiating and maintaining cell differentiation events. AES is similar in sequence to the amino terminus of Drosophila enhancer of split groucho, a protein which is involved in neurogenesis during embryonic development. The AES protein is expressed predominately in the fetal brain, liver, lung, heart and kidney and also in the adult muscle.

HSPB11 is a component of IFT complex B composed of IFT88, IFT57, TRAF3IP1, IFT52, IFT27, HSPB11 and IFT20. HSPB11 is detected in the placenta.

Charged multivesicular body protein 6 (CHMP6) is a member of the SNF7 family. The CHMP6 protein is a core component of the endosomal sorting necessary for transport complex III (ESCRT-III) that is involved in multivesicular bodies (MVBs) formation and sorting of endosomal cargo proteins into MVBs. MVBs contain intraluminal vesicles (ILVs) which are produced by invagination and scission from the limiting membrane of the endosome and generally are transported to lysosomes facilitating degradation of membrane proteins, such as stimulated growth factor receptors, lysosomal enzymes and lipids.

Cysteine protease ATG4B (ATG4B) belongs to the autophagin protein family. Autophagy is the manner by which endogenous proteins and damaged organelles are destroyed intracellularly. Autophagy is vital for cell homeostasis and cell remodeling during differentiation, metamorphosis, non-apoptotic cell death, and aging. ATG4B is a cysteine protease necessary for autophagy, which cleaves the C-terminal part of either MAP1LC3, GABARAPL2 or GABARAP, allowing the liberation of form I. A subpopulation of form I is then transformed to a smaller form (form II). Form II, with an exposed C-terminal glycine, is deemed to be the phosphatidylethanolamine (PE)-conjugated form, and is capable of binding to autophagosomes. Reduced levels of autophagy are seen in some malignant tumors; therefore autophagy may have a role in controlling the unregulated cell growth linked to cancer.

MICB (MHC class I chain-related gene B) is a transmembrane glycoprotein that functions as a ligand for human NKG2D type II receptor. A closely related protein, MICA, shares 85% amino acid identity with MICB. These 2 proteins are distantly related to the MHC class I proteins. MICA and MICB (MICA/B) possess three extracellular immunoglobulin-like domains, but have no capacity to bind peptide or interact with ?2-microglobulin. The genes encoding MICA/B are found within the major histocompatibility complex on human chromosome 6. The MICB locus is polymorphic with more than 15 recognized human alleles. MICA/B are minimally expressed on normal cells, but are frequently expressed on epithelial tumors and can be induced by bacterial and viral infections. MICA/B are ligands for NKG2D, an activating receptor expressed on NK cells, NKT cells, ?? T cells, and CD8+ ?? T cells. Recognition of MICA/B by NKG2D results in the activation of cytolytic activity and/or cytokine production by these effector cells. MICA/B recognition is involved in tumor surveillance, viral infections, and autoimmune diseases. The release of soluble forms of MICA/B from tumors down-regulates NKG2D surface expression on effector cells resulting in the impairment of anti-tumor immune response.

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.

MDC (CCL22) is a small cytokine that belongs to the CC chemokine family. CCL22 is one of several Cys-Cys (CC) cytokine genes clustered on the q arm of chromosome 16. MDC shows chemotactic activity for natural killer cells, chronically activated T lymphocytes, monocytes and dendritic cells. On the other hand, MDC shows a mild activity for primary activated T lymphocytes and has no chemoattractant activity for neutrophils, eosinophils and resting T lymphocytes. MDC may also have a role in the trafficking of activated T lymphocytes to inflammatory sites and other aspects of activated T lymphocyte physiology. MDC interacts with cell surface chemokine receptors CCR4.
CCL22 is vastly expressed in macrophage and in monocyte-derived dendritic cells, and thymus. CCL22 is also found in the lymph node, appendix, activated monocytes, resting and activated macrophages. Lower expression of CCL22 can be seen in the lung and the spleen and very weak expression in the small intestine. In the lymph node CCL22 is expressed in a mature subset of Langerhans' cells (CD1a+ and CD83+).
Furthermore, CCL22 is expressed in atopic dermatitis, allergic contact dermatitis skin, and psoriasis, in both the epidermis and dermis. In addition, MDC has a role in hindering progression of lung cancer. Moreover, significantly higher CCL22 expression is linked to gastric cancer.

Sirtuin-1 (SIRT1) belongs to the sirtuin family of proteins, homologs to the yeast Sir2 protein. Sirtuin family members are characterized by a sirtuin core domain and grouped into 4 classes. The functions of human sirtuins have not yet been established; though, yeast sirtuin proteins are known to regulate epigenetic gene silencing and suppress recombination of rDNA. It has been proposed that the human sirtuins may serve as intracellular regulatory proteins with mono-ADP-ribosyltransferase activity.

GDF-5 is a member of the bone morphogenetic protein (BMP) family and the TGF-beta superfamily. This group of proteins is characterized by a polybasic proteolytic processing site which is cleaved to produce a mature protein containing seven conserved cysteine residues. The members of this family are regulators of cell growth and differentiation in both embryonic and adult tissues. Mutations in this gene are associated with acromesomelic dysplasia, Hunter-Thompson type; brachydactyly, type C; and chondrodysplasia, Grebe type. These associations confirm that the gene product plays a role in skeletal development.

BIRC7 is a part of the inhibitor of apoptosis protein (IAP) family and contains a single copy of a baculovirus IAP repeat (BIR) as well as a RING-type zinc finger domain. The BIR domain is necessary for inhibitory activity & cooperates with caspases, while the RING finger domain sometimes increases anti-apoptotic activity but doesn’t inhibit apoptosis by itself. 2 transcript variants encoding diverse isoforms have been found for this gene. The 2 isoforms have dissimilar antiapoptotic characteristics, with isoform a protecting cells from apoptosis induced by staurosporine and isoform b defending cells from apoptosis induced by etoposide.
BIRC7 has direct contact with several caspases together with caspase-3, caspase-7, & caspase –9. BIRC7 inhibits the activation of caspase-9 induced by Apaf-1, cytochrome c, and dATP.

HERPUD1 is a multi-pass membrane protein which is a part of the endoplasmic reticulum quality control system. HERPUD1 owns 1 N-terminal ubiquitin-like domain and is expressed highly in the brain. HERPUD1 is also known as ER-associated degradation (ERAD) which takes part in ubiquitin-dependent degradation of misfolded endoplasmic reticulum proteins.

RAC1 is a GTPase which belongs to the RAS superfamily of small GTP-binding proteins. Members of this superfamily appear to regulate a diverse array of cellular events, including the control of cell growth, cytoskeletal reorganization, and the activation of protein kinases. RAC-1 regulates the actin cytoskeleton but also other cellular processes. RAC1 have been shown to be involved in the regulation of cell-cell adhesion.

VEGF-C, also known as Vascular Endothelial Growth Factor Related Protein (VRP), is a recently discovered VEGF growth factor family member that is most closely related to VEGF-D. The rat VEGFC cDNA encodes a pre-pro-protein of 416 amino acids residues.
It is almost identical to the mouse VEGF-C protein. Similar to VEGF-D, VEGF-C has a VEGF homology domain spanning the middle third of the precursor molecule and long N- and C-terminal extensions. In adults, VEGF-C is highly expressed in heart, placenta, ovary and small intestine. Recombinant rat VEGF-C, lacking the N- and C-terminal extensions and containing only the middle VEGF homology domain, forms primarily non-covalently linked dimers. This protein is a ligand for both VEGFR-2/KDR and VEGFR-3/FLT -4. Since VEGFR-3 is strongly expressed in lymphatic endothelial cells, it has been postulated that VEGF-C is involved in the regulation of the growth and/or differentiation of lymphatic endothelium. Although recombinant rat VEGF-C is also a mitogen for vascular endothelial cells, it is much less potent than VEGF-A.

Lactoferrin is a glycoprotein that belongs to the transferrin family of iron binding proteins. It is found in human breast milk as well as most epithelial surface secretions including tears, nasogastric, saliva, and bronchial. Lactoferrin binds 2 molecules of iron with very high affinity. Lactoferrin inhibits bacterial growth by withholding iron, its N-terminal region is an antimicrobial peptide. Lactotransferrin acts synergistically with lysozyme to potentiate the activity of both proteins. The multifunctional protein lactoferrin has many physiological possible roles. It is often referred to as an innate defense protein and frequently serves as the first line of defense in protection against pathogens. It has been shown to have the ability to bind iron, it is a natural anti-bacterial, anti-fungal and anti-viral, it is an antioxidant and it also has immunomodulatory properties. It has many beneficial properties, which make it a good candidate for a number of product applications. Considerable research is currently going on to explain the various suggested biological functions of lactoferrin.

Breast Cancer Anti-Estrogen Resistance 1 (BCAR1) is a Src family kinase substrate which takes part in a range of cellular events such as migration, survival, transformation, and invasion. BCAR1 plays a vital role for tyrosine kinase-based signaling related to cell adhesion.

CCS is vital for the integration of copper into SOD-1, and as a result is needed for its enzymatic activity. CCS inhibits copper ions from binding to intracellular copper scavengers and provides the SOD-1 enzyme with the required copper cofactor. CCS escorts copper just to SOD-1 and is unable to deliver copper to proteins in the mitochondria, nucleus or secretory pathway. Although many tissues express CCS, the chaperone is most abundant in the kidney, liver and Purkinje cells in the neuropil of the central nervous system.

TREM1 is a transmembrane receptor protein that is involved in monocytic activation and in the inflammatory response. TREM1 is expressed on the surface of neutrophils, mature monocytes and macrophages. TREM1 stimulates neutrophil and monocyte-mediated inflammatory responses. TREM1 also triggers the release of pro-inflammatory chemokines and cytokines, as well as increased surface expression of cell activation markers. Furthermore, TREM1 is an amplifier of inflammatory responses that are triggered by bacterial and fungal infections and is a fundamental mediator of septic shock. The expression of the soluble form of TREM1 increases during sepsis and can consequently be used as a biological marker for septic shock. TREM1 is strongly expressed in acute inflammatory lesions caused by bacteria and fungi. Increased TREM1 expression on monocytes is related to both infectious and noninfectious inflammatory processes.
TREM1 is vastly expressed in adult liver, lung and spleen than in corresponding fetal tissue. TREM1 is also expressed in the lymph node, placenta, spinal cord and heart tissues. TREM1 expression is more elevated in peripheral blood leukocytes than in the bone marrow and in normal cells than malignant cells. TREM1 is expressed at low levels in the early development of the hematopoietic system and in the promonocytic stage and at high levels in mature monocytes.

Prorelaxin H2 (RLN2) is a member of a family which is produced by the ovary, targets the mammalian reproductive system to ripen the cervix, elongate the pubic symphysis and inhibit uterine contraction. It may also have other roles in boosting sperm motility, regulating blood pressure, controlling heart rate and releasing vasopressin. RLN2 is a peptide hormone linked to several therapeutically relevant physiological effects, including regulation of collagen metabolism and multiple vascular control pathways. The active form of the RLN2 protein consists of an A chain and a B chain linked by disulfide bonds.