Search results

GOT1 is a pyridoxal phosphate-dependent enzyme which exists in cytoplasmic and mitochondrial forms, GOT1 and GOT2, which participate in amino acid metabolism and the urea and tricarboxylic acid cycles. Both enzymes are homodimeric and show close homology.

Glypican 4, also known as GPC4, is part of a family of glycosylphosphatidylinositol (GPI)-anchored heparan sulphate proteoglycans (HSPGs) which take part in the control of cell division and growth regulation. GPC4 is broadly expressed in human tissues, including lung, kidney, heart, placenta, skeletal muscle, and pancreas. In addition, GPC4 has been shown to be present in astrocytes, haematopoietic-progenitor and bone-marrow-stromal cells.

MAP1LC3B is a member of the MAP1 LC3 family. MAP1LC3B is a subunit of neuronal microtubule-associated MAP1A and MAP1B proteins, that are involved in microtubule assembly and important for neurogenesis. In addition, MAP1LC3B takes part in formation of autophagosomal vacuoles and is expressed mainly in heart, testis, brain and skeletal muscle.

MAPT is a neuronal microtubule associated protein localized mostly on axons.
MAPT promotes tubulin polymerisation and stabilizes microtubules, however it also serves to connect certain signalling pathways to the cytoskeleton. MAPT, in its hyperphosphorylated form, is the main part of paired helical filaments (PHF) and neurofibrillary lesions in Alzheimer''s disease (AD) brain.

Chemokine (C-C motif) ligand 2 (CCL2) is a small cytokine belonging to the CC chemokine family that is also known as monocyte chemotactic protein-1 (MCP-1). It is found at the site of tooth eruption and bone degradation. In the bone, CCL2 is expressed by mature osteoclasts and osteoblasts and is under the control of nuclear factor ?B (NF?B). CCL2 recruits immune cells, such as monocytes, to sites of tissue injury and infection. This chemokine is produced as a protein precursor containing signal peptide of 23 amino acids and a mature peptide of 76 amino acids. It is a monomeric polypeptide, with a molecular weightof approximately 13kDa. As with many other CC chemokines, CCL2 is located on chromosome 17 in humans. The cell surface receptors that bind CCL2 are CCR2 and CCR5.

RARRES2 is a secreted chemotactic protein that initiates chemotaxis through the ChemR23 G protein-coupled seven-transmembrane domain ligand. RARRES2 acts as an adipokine, and is truncated on both termini from the proprotein. RARRES2 is structurally related to the cathelicidin precursors, cystatin C and kininogens. RARRES2 promotes calcium mobilization and chemotaxis of immature dendritic cells and macrophages. RARRES2 is secreted as a precursor of little biological activity, which requires proteolytic cleavage of its COOH-terminal domain to be exchangeed into a potent and highly specific agonist of ChemR23. RARRES2 signals via its receptor, ChemR23 (CMKLR1), as a positive regulator of adipocyte differentiation and metabolic function. The Chemerin receptor acts as a coreceptor for SIV and some primary HIV-1 strains.

Interleukin-6 Signal Transducer or IL6ST is a receptor, part of the family of class 1 cytokine receptor. IL6ST binds to IL-6 through membrane-anchored or soluble IL-6R starts a connection between another complex of IL6ST and IL-6 , thus forming a homo-dimer and a signal transduction occurs.

Interferon Alpha and Beta Receptor Subunit 2 or IFNAR2 is a protein, part of the class II cytokine receptor family. When different innate immune signaling transduction are activated, there is a rapid induction of type I IFNs because it has an intronless gene source. IFNAR2 is the main ligand and binds to the receptor. Once bind, stabilization occurs and a signaling compelx recptor is formed. IFNAR2 also takes part in the activation process of STAT proteins.

Nuclear Receptor-Interacting Protein (NRIP3)is a 241 amino acid protein which is encoded by a gene that maps to human chromosome 11.Diseases associated with NRIP3 include sarcoma, and acute myeloid leukemia.

Interleukin-22 (IL-22), also known as IL-10-related T cell-derived inducible factor (IL-TIF) was initially identified as a gene induced by IL-9 in mouse T cells and mast cells. Mouse IL-22 cDNA encodes a 179 amino acid residue protein with a putative 33 amino acids signal peptide that is cleaved to generate a 147 aa mature protein that shares approximately 79% and 22% aa sequence identity with human IL-22 and IL-10, respectively. IL-22 has been shown to activate STAT-1 and STAT-3 in several hepatoma cell lines and upregulate the production of acute phase proteins. IL-22 is produced by normal mouse T cells upon Con A activation. Mouse IL-22 expression is also induced in various organs upon lipopolysaccharide injection, suggesting that IL-22 may be involved in inflammatory responses. The functional IL-22 receptor complex consists of two receptor subunits, IL-22R (previously an orphan receptor named CRF2-9) and IL-10R? (previously known as CRF2-4), belonging to the class II cytokine receptor family.

PAK4 is part of the group B family of p21-activated kinases (PAK). It's known as an effector protein for cell division cycle 42(Cdc42) and protein that plays an important role in regulating cytoskeletal organization and cell morphology. PAK4 expression is eminent in many cancer cell lines, and is involved in tumorigenesis. PAK proteins are significant effectors that associate Rho GTPases to cytoskeleton reorganization and nuclear signaling. PAK proteins are targets for the small GTP binding proteins Cdc42 and Rac and have been implicated in a wide range of biological activities. PAK4 cooperates specifically with the GTP-bound form of Cdc42Hs and weakly activates the JNK family of MAP kinases. PAK4 is a mediator of filopodia formation and is involved in the reorganization of the actin cytoskeleton. PAK4 activates the JNK pathway. PAK4 phosphorylates and inactivates the protein phosphatase SSH1, leading to increased inhibitory phosphorylation of the actin binding/depolymerizing factor cofilin. Decreased cofilin activity may lead to stabilization of actin filaments.

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.

KRT20 is a member of the keratin family. The keratins are intermediate filament proteins responsible for the structural integrity of epithelial cells and are subdivided into cytokeratins and hair keratins. The type I cytokeratins consist of acidic proteins which are arranged in pairs of heterotypic keratin chains. This cytokeratin is a major cellular protein of mature enterocytes and goblet cells and is specifically expressed in the gastric and intestinal mucosa. The type I cytokeratin genes are clustered in a region of chromosome 17q12-q21.

Human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) is a retrovirusthat can lead to a condition in which the immune systembegins to fail, leading to opportunistic infections. HIV primarily infects vital cells in the humanimmune systemsuch as helper T cells(specifically CD4+ T cells), macrophagesand dendritic cells. HIV infection leads to low levels of CD4+ T cells through three main mechanisms: firstly, direct viral killing of infected cells; secondly, increased rates of apoptosisin infected cells; and thirdly, killing of infected CD4+ T cells by CD8 cytotoxic lymphocytesthat recognize infected cells. When CD4+ T cell numbers decline below a critical level, cell-mediated immunityis lost, and the body becomes progressively more susceptible to opportunistic infections. HIV was classified as a member of the genus Lentivirus, part of the family of Retroviridae. Lentiviruses have many common morphologies and biological properties. Many species are infected by lentiviruses, which are characteristically responsible for long-duration illnesses with a long incubation period. Lentiviruses are transmitted as single-stranded, positive-sense, enveloped RNA viruses. Upon entry of the target cell, the viral RNA genomeis converted to double-stranded DNAby a virally encoded reverse transcriptasethat is present in the virus particle. This viral DNA is then integrated into the cellular DNA by a virally encoded integraseso that the genome can be transcribed. Once the virus has infected the cell, two pathways are possible: either the virus becomes latentand the infected cell continues to function, or the virus becomes active and replicates, and a large number of virus particles are liberated that can then infect other cells.

HIV-1 and HIV-2 appear to package their RNA differently. HIV-1 binds to any appropriate RNA whereas HIV-2 preferentially binds to mRNA which creates the Gag protein itself. This means that HIV-1 is better able to mutate. HIV-2 is transmitted in the same ways as HIV-1: Through exposure to bodily fluids such as blood, semen, tears and vaginal fluids.
Immunodeficiency develops more slowly with HIV-2.
HIV-2 is less infectious in the early stages of the virus than with HIV-1.
The infectiousness of HIV-2 increases as the virus progresses.
Major differences include reduced pathogenicity of HIV-2 relative to HIV-1, enhanced immune control of HIV-2 infection and often some degree of CD4-independence. Despite considerable sequence and phenotypic differences between HIV-1 and 2 envelopes, structurally they are quite similar. Both membrane-anchored proteins eventually form the 6-helix bundles from the N-terminal and C-terminal regions of the ectodomain, which is common to many viral and cellular fusion proteins and which seems to drive fusion.
HIV-1 gp41 helical regions can form more stable 6-helix bundles than
HIV-2 gp41 helical regions however HIV-2 fusion occurs at a lower threshold temperature (25°C), does not require Ca2+ in the medium, is insensitive to treatment of target cells with cytochalasin B, and is not affected by target membrane glycosphingolipid composition.

SARS Associated Coronavirus Spike is a causative agent of SARS virus. Diseases caused by Coronaviruses are usually controlled by CD8 T cells. The spike antigen is one of the main surface proteins on Coronavirus, therefore one of the main proteins that are candidates for vaccines.

The hematopoietic growth factor GM-CSF or granulocyte macrophage colony-stimulating factor, stimulates the development of neutrophils & macrophages, enhance proliferation and development of early erythroid megakaryocytic & eosinophilic progenitor cells. GM-CSF is secreted from the fibroblasts, monocytes, T-lymphocytes & endothelial cells. This protein blocks the migration of neutrophils & induces the biological activity of mature end-cells.

S100A9 is part of the S100 family of proteins containing 2 EF-hand calcium-binding motifs. S100A9 protein is localized in the cytoplasm and/or nucleus of a wide range of cells, and participates in the regulation of several cellular processes such as cell cycle progression and differentiation. S100 genes include no less than 13 proteins which are localized as a cluster on chromosome 1q21. S100A9 is involved in the inhibition of casein kinase and altered expression of this protein is associated with the disease cystic fibrosis.

Complement Factor Properdin (CFP) which is a plasma glycoprotein, is a positive regulator of the alternative complement pathway of the innate immune system. CFP binds and stabilizes the C3- and C5-convertase enzyme complexes in a feedback loop that eventually ends with formation of the membrane attack complex and lysis of the target cell. Mutations in CFP lead to 2 forms of properdin deficiency that cause high susceptibility to meningococcal infections.

N-acetylneuraminate lyase (NPL) is an enzyme which catalyzes the chemical reaction (N-acetylneuraminate ->N-acetyl-D-mannosamine + pyruvate). NPL is a member of a family of lyases, specifically the oxo-acid-lyases, which cleave carbon-carbon bonds. NPL participates in amino sugars metabolism.

HMOX2 cleaves the heme ring at the alpha methene bridge to form biliverdin. Biliverdin is subsequently transferred to bilirubin by biliverdin reductase. Under physiological conditions, the activity of HMOX2 is highest in the spleen, where senescent erythrocytes are sequestrated and destroyed. HMOX2 participates in the production of carbon monoxide in the brain where it operates as a neurotransmitter. HMOX2 is an essential enzyme in heme catabolism and is involved in cellular response to oxidative stress.

The fasting-induced adipose factor (FIAF, ANGPTL4, PGAR, HFARP) was identified as an adipocytokine up-regulated by fasting, by peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor agonists, and by hypoxia. At the protein level, in human and mouse blood plasma, FIAF was found to be present both as a native protein and in a truncated form. Differentiation of mouse 3T3-L1 adipocytes was associated with the production of truncated FIAF, whereas in human white adipose tissue and SGBS adipocytes, only the native FIAF could be detected. Interestingly, the truncated FIAF was produced by human liver.
Experimental data suggest that FIAF is mainly presented in human blood plasma in a truncated form (FIAF-S2), whose level is increased by fenofibrate treatment. Levels of both truncated and native FIAF showed marked inter individual variation but were not associated with body mass index and were not influenced by prolonged semistarvation.

IL13 is an immunoregulatory cytokine produced primarily by activated Th2 cells. IL-13 is involved in several stages of B-cell maturation and differentiation. It up-regulates CD23 and MHC class II expression, and promotes IgE isotype switching of B cells. This cytokine down-regulates macrophage activity, thereby inhibits the production of pro-inflammatory cytokines and chemokines. This cytokine is found to be critical to the pathogenesis of allergen-induced asthma but operates through mechanisms independent of IgE and eosinophils. This gene, IL3, IL5, IL4, and CSF2 form a cytokine gene cluster on chromosome 5q, with this gene particularly close to IL4.

CD320 is a part of the low-density lipoprotein receptor family, having 2 low-density lipoprotein receptor type A domains divided by a complement-like cysteine-rich region. CD320 participates in cobalamin uptake and internalizes the complex by endocytosis. CD320 is also plays a role as costimulator to promote B cell and follicular dendritic cells responses. CD320 is also known to augment the proliferation of PC precursors generated by IL-10.