Everything about Crystallin totally explained
In
biology, a
crystallin is a water-soluble structural
protein found in the
lens of the
eye, accounting for the transparency of the structure. It has also been identified in other places such as the heart
and aggressive breast cancer tumors
.
Since it has been shown that lens injury may promote nerve regeneration,
crystallin has been an area of neural research. So far, it has been demonstrated that crystallin β b2 (crybb2) may be a neurite promoting factor
.
Function
The main function of crystallins at least in the
lens of the eye is probably to increase the refractive index while not obstructing light. However, this isn't their only function. It is becoming increasingly clear that crystallins may have a several metabolic and regulatory functions, both within the lens and in other parts of the body .
Enzyme activity
Interestingly and perhaps excitingly from an
evolutionary perspective, some crystallins are active
enzymes. A number of crystallins are related to the
serine and
tyrosine proteases, and others to
quinone oxidoreductases. Whether these crystallins are products of a happy accident of evolution, in that these particular enzymes happened to be transparent, or whether the enzymatic activity is a part of the protective machinery of the lens, is an active research topic.
Classification
Crystallins from a vertebrate eye lens are classified into three types: alpha, beta and gamma crystallins. These distinctions are based on the order in which they elute from a
gel filtration chromatography column. These are also called ubiquitous crystallins. Beta- and gamma-crystallins are similar in sequence, structure and domains topology, and thus have been grouped together as a protein superfamily called βγ-Crystallins. The
α-crystallin superfamily and βγ-crystallins compose the major superfamily of proteins present in the crystalline lens.
In addition to these crystallins there are other
taxon-specific crystallins which are only found in the lens of some organisms; these include delta, epsilon, tau, and iota-crystallins. For example, alpha, beta, and delta crystallins are found in avian and reptilian lenses, and the alpha, beta, and gamma families are found in the lenses of all other vertebrates.
Further Information
Get more info on 'Crystallin'.
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