Search results

IL-18 is a proinflammatory cytokine. This cytokine can induce the IFN-gamma production of T cells. The combination of this cytokine and IL12 has been shown to inhibit IL4 dependent IgE and IgG1 production, and enhance IgG2a production of B cells. IL-18 binding protein (IL18BP) can specifically interact with this cytokine, and thus negatively regulate its biological activity.

IL-9 is a factor which is thought to be a regulator of hematopoiesis. It has been shown to enhance the growth of human mast cells and megakaryoblastic leukemic cells as well as murine helper t-cell clones. IL-9 is a glycoprotein with a molecular weight of 32-39 that is derived from T-cells, and maps to human chromosome 5.

6PGD is the 2nd dehydrogenase in the pentose phosphate shift. Pentose is crucial for the biosynthesis of nucleic acid. The pentose phosphate cycle is a prominent source of NADPH. 6PGD deficiency is mostly asymptomatic, and the inheritance of this deasis is autosomal dominant. PGD deficiency elevate the erythrocyte pyruvate kinase levels of activity & decreases glutathione synthetase, which causes hemolysis.

MAFK is a member of the bZIP family and Maf subfamily. Members from Maf family of basic region/leucine zipper (bZIP) transcription factors influence transcription in a positive or negative way, depending on their protein associate and the context of the target promoter. Small Mafs act as transcriptional repressors when they dimerize among themselves. Yet, they seem to function as transcriptional activators by dimerizing with other basic-zipper proteins and employing them to specific DNA-binding sites.

Vascular endothelial growth factoris an important signaling proteininvolved in both vasculogenesisand angiogenesis. As its name implies, VEGF activity has been mostly studied on cells of the vascular endothelium, although it does have effects on a number of other cell types (e.g. stimulation monocyte/macrophagemigration, neurons, cancer cells, kidney epithelial cells ).VEGF mediates increased vascular permeability, induces angiogenesis, vasculogenesis and endothelial cell growth, promotes cell migration, and inhibits apoptosis. In vitro, VEGF has been shown to stimulate endothelial cell mitogenesisand cell migration. VEGF is also a vasodilator and increases microvascular permeability and was originally referred to as vascular permeability factor.
Elevated levels of this protein is linked to POEMS syndrome, also known as Crow-Fukase syndrome. Mutations in this gene have been associated with proliferative and nonproliferative diabetic retinopathy.

ALDH2 is part of the aldehyde dehydrogenase family of proteins which catalyze the chemical transformation from acetaldehyde to acetic acid. ALDH2 is the second enzyme of the major oxidative pathway of alcohol metabolism. ALDH2 has 2 major liver isoforms: cytosolic and mitochondrial, which differ by their electrophoretic mobilities, kinetic properties, and subcellular localizations. Nearly all Caucasians have 2 major isozymes, whereas roughly 50% of Orientals have only the cytosolic isozyme, omitting the mitochondrial isozyme. The extremely higher rate of acute alcohol intoxication with Orientals compared to Caucasians is due to the fact of the absence of mitochondrial isozyme. ALDH2 has a low Km for acetaldehydes, and is localized in mitochondrial matrix.

Cathepsin B preproprotein (CTSB) is a papain-family cysteine protease which is normally located in lysosomes. CTSB is able to degrade several extracellular matrix components at both neutral and acidic pH and has been implicated in the progression of some human and rodent tumors progression and arthritis.

IL-16 is a pleiotropic cytokine that functions as a chemoattractant, a modulator of T cell activation, and an inhibitor of HIV replication. The signaling process of IL-16 is mediated by CD4. The product of this gene undergoes proteolytic processing, which is found to yield two functional proteins. IL-16 functions exclusively attributed to the secreted C-terminal peptide, while the N-terminal product may play a role in cell cycle control. Caspase 3 is reported to be involved in the proteolytic processing of this protein. Two transcript variants encoding different isoforms have been found for this gene.
IL-16 stimulates a migratory response in cd4+ lymphocytes, monocytes, and eosinophils. Also induces t-lymphocyte expression of interleukin 2 receptor, ligand for cd4.

Leukocyte Immunoglobulin Like Receptor B1 (LILRB1) is a member of the leukocyteimmunoglobulinlike receptor (LIR) family. LILRB1is expressed on immune cells, binds to MHC classI molecules on antigen-presenting cells and transduces a negative signal that inhibits stimulation of an immuneresponse. LILRB1 controls inflammatory responses and cytotoxicity to help focus the immune responseand limit autoreactivity. LILRB1 is also expressed on the surface of B cells and monocytes, subsets of NKcells, gamma δ T cells,memory/effector CD8+ T cells and monocyte-derived dendritic cells.

CD48, is a GPI-linked protein which belongs to the CD2 family of immunoglobulin superfamily molecules. CD48 is capable to transduce signals and can likewise trigger signaling through CD2 or 2B4. CD48 to CD2 interactions advocate T cell activation and class replacing to IgG2a in B cells. In addition, high affinity of CD48 to 2B4, interactions may either promote or inhibit NK cell as well as cytotoxic T cell (CTL) activation. CD48 does not contain a transmembrane domain, though it is held at the cell surface by a GPI anchor through a C-terminal domain which possibly split to produce a soluble form of the receptor.

TIMP2 belongs to the TIMP gene family. The proteins encoded by this gene family are natural inhibitors of the matrix metalloproteinases, a group of peptidases that take part in degradation of the extracellular matrix. Besides having an inhibitory role against metalloproteinases, the encoded protein has a exclusive part among TIMP family members in its capability to directly suppress the proliferation of endothelial cells. Consequently, the encoded protein is crucial to the conservation of tissue homeostasis by suppressing the production of quiescent tissues as an answer to angiogenic factors, and by inhibiting protease activity in tissues undergoing renovation of the extracellular matrix.

Leptin is a protein hormone with important effects in regulating body weight, metabolism and reproductive function. The protein is approximately~16 kDa in mass and encoded by the obese (ob)gene. leptin is expressed predominantly by adipocytes, which fits with the idea that body weight is sensed as the total mass of fat in the body. Smaller amounts of leptin are also secreted by cellsin the epithelium of the stomach and in the placenta. Leptin receptors are highly expressed in areas of the hypothalamus known to be important in regulating body weight, as well as in T lymphocytes and vascular endothelial cells.

Alcohol dehydrogenase 1A (ADH1A) is a member of the alcohol dehydrogenase family. ADH1A has a key role in ethanol metabolism. ADH1A along with coenzyme NAD catalyzes the reversible conversion of organic alcohols to ketones or aldehydes. The physiologic function of ADH1A in the liver is the elimination of ethanol formed by microorganisms in the intestinal tract. ADH1A is monomorphic and predominant in fetal and infant livers, growing to be less active in gestation and only weakly active during adulthood.

A natural cytotoxicity receptor (NCR) NKp46 has been shown to represent a novel NK cell-specific molecule involved in human NK cell activation. The natural cytotoxicity receptors (NCRs) are a recently characterized family of Ig-like activation receptors that appear to be major triggering receptors in tumor cell recognition. The three known NCRs include NKp46 and NKp30, which are expressed on circulating NKcells, and NKp44, which is expressed only on activating NK cells. NKp46 has been implicated in NK cell-mediated lysis of several autologous tumor cells, pathogen-infected cell lines and mononuclear phagocytes infected with an intracellular bacterium. The Lysis of tumor cells by NK-cells involves recognition by NKp46 of heparan sulfate moieties of membrane heparan sulfate proteoglycans. Furthermore, NKp46 is a surface receptor involved in NK-cell cell death by apoptosis. NKp46 has two extracellular Ig-like domains followed by a ~40 residue stalk region, a type I transmembrane domain, and a short cytoplasmic tail. The extracellular Ig-like domain of NKp46 (22-255aa) is purified by FPLC gel-filtration chromatography, after refolding of the isolated inclusion bodies in a redox buffer. In addition, engagement of the antigen with the monoclonal antibody stimulates intracellular calcium levels and the synthesis of cytokines. CD59 is an NKp46 coreceptor (by physical association) together they activate cytotoxicity of human NK-cells, their engagement results in tyrosine phosphorylation of CD3-zeta chains associated with NKp46. Reduced cell surface expression of NKp46 and other NK-cell receptors is linked to the impaired NK-cell cytolytic function in viremic HIV-1 infection.

C-Src Tyrosine Kinase, also known as CSK, regulates cell growth, migration, differentiation, and immune response. CSK Phosphorylates tyrosine residues located in the C-terminal tails of Src-family kinases. CSK is a protein coding gene which suppresses signaling by several surface receptors. Among CSK's related pathways are PI-3K cascade and Signaling by FGFR.

ErbB3, also called Her3 (human epidermal growth factor receptor 3), is a type I membrane glycoprotein that is a member of the ErbB family of tyrosine kinase receptors. ErbB family members serve as receptors for the epidermal growth factor (EGF) family of growth factors. Among ErbB family members, ErbB3 is unique in that it contains a defective kinase domain. ErbB3 is expressed in keratinocytes, melanocytes, skeletal muscle cells, embryonic myoblasts and Schwann cells. Monomeric ErbB3 serves as a low affinity receptor for the heregulins (HRG). ErbB3 can induce specific antibody production in vivo, hence to inhibit tumor cell growth. ErbB-3 can be used to treat early, medium and advanced or post-operative breast cancer with over-expression of ErbB2. According to its mechanism of action, ErbB3 is classified as a therapeutic for cancer.

Interleukin-1b is produced by activated macrophages, IL-1B stimulates thymocyte proliferation by inducing il-2 release, b-cell maturation and proliferation, and fibroblast growth factor activity. IL1B proteins are involved in the inflammatory response, being identified as endogenous pyrogens, and are reported to stimulate the release of prostaglandin and collagenase from synovial cells.

The IL-6 receptor complex is composed of two membrane glycoproteins: the low affinity receptor and the signaltransducing component. The soluble form of IL6R is found in the urine of healthy adult humans and the serum of HIV positive individuals, as well as in the cell culture supernatants of stimulated PBMC’s. This soluble form of IL6R results from either proteolytic cleavage from the membrane, or an isoform derived splice variant.

COAA is a member of the prokaryotic pantothenate kinase family and it is the first enzyme in the Coenzyme A biosynthetic pathway. COAA phosphorylates pantothenate (vitamin B5) to form 4'-phosphopantothenate. The key factor controlling the intracellular CoA concentration is the regulation of COAA activity by feedback inhibition.

NANS is a 359 amino acid protein that contains one AFP (antifreeze proteins)-like domain and functions in the biosynthesis of sialic acids. The ubiquitously expressed NANS enzymatically catalyzes the H2O-dependent formation of N-acetylneuraminic acid (Neu5Ac) and 2-keto-3-deoxy-D-glycero-D-galacto-nononic acid (KDN), both of which are sialic acids. NANS uses N-acetylmannosamine 6-phosphate as a substrate for Neu5Ac synthesis and mannose 6-phosphate as a substrate for KDN synthesis.

PSME1 is an interferon gamma (IFNG) inducible proteasome activator essential for presentation of certain major histocompatibility (MHC) class I antigens. The PSME1 complex is an alternate proteasome activator which operates with no use of ubiquitin. The PSME1 complex is made out of two homologous subunits, alpha and beta, that functions in similar catalytic properties and is connected to a hexameric ring.

The protein encoded by this gene is a cytokine that regulates T and natural killer cell activation and proliferation. This cytokine and interleukine 2 share many biological activities. They are found to bind common hematopoietin receptor subunits, and may compete for the same receptor, and thus negatively regulate each other's activity. The number of CD8+ memory cells is shown to be controlled by a balance between this cytokine and IL2. This cytokine induces the activation of JAK kinases, as well as the phosphorylation and activation of transcription activators STAT3, STAT5, and STAT6. Studies of the mouse counterpart suggested that this cytokine may increase the expression of apoptosis inhibitor BCL2L1/BCL-x(L), possibly through the transcription activation activity of STAT6, and thus prevent apoptosis. Two alternatively spliced transcript variants of this gene encoding the same protein have been reported.

TIMP2 belongs to the TIMP gene family. The proteins encoded by this gene family are natural inhibitors of the matrix metalloproteinases, a group of peptidases that take part in degradation of the extracellular matrix. Besides having an inhibitory role against metalloproteinases, the encoded protein has a exclusive part among TIMPfamily members in its capability to directly suppress the proliferation of endothelial cells. Consequently, the encoded protein is crucial to the conservation of tissue homeostasis by suppressing the production of quiescent tissues as an answer to angiogenic factors, and by inhibiting protease activity in tissues undergoing renovation of the extracellular matrix.