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Angiomotin-like Protein 1
Angiomotin-like protein 1 is a protein that in humans is encoded by the AMOTL1 gene. Function The protein encoded by this gene is a peripheral membrane protein that is a component of tight junctions or TJs. TJs form an apical junctional structure and act to control paracellular permeability and maintain cell polarity. This protein is related to angiomotin, an angiostatin binding protein that regulates endothelial cell migration and capillary A capillary is a small blood vessel from 5 to 10 micrometres (μm) in diameter. Capillaries are composed of only the tunica intima, consisting of a thin wall of simple squamous endothelial cells. They are the smallest blood vessels in the body: ... formation. References External links * Further reading * * * * * {{gene-11-stub ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Protein
Proteins are large biomolecules and macromolecules that comprise one or more long chains of amino acid residues. Proteins perform a vast array of functions within organisms, including catalysing metabolic reactions, DNA replication, responding to stimuli, providing structure to cells and organisms, and transporting molecules from one location to another. Proteins differ from one another primarily in their sequence of amino acids, which is dictated by the nucleotide sequence of their genes, and which usually results in protein folding into a specific 3D structure that determines its activity. A linear chain of amino acid residues is called a polypeptide. A protein contains at least one long polypeptide. Short polypeptides, containing less than 20–30 residues, are rarely considered to be proteins and are commonly called peptides. The individual amino acid residues are bonded together by peptide bonds and adjacent amino acid residues. The sequence of amino acid residue ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Gene
In biology, the word gene (from , ; "...Wilhelm Johannsen coined the word gene to describe the Mendelian units of heredity..." meaning ''generation'' or ''birth'' or ''gender'') can have several different meanings. The Mendelian gene is a basic unit of heredity and the molecular gene is a sequence of nucleotides in DNA that is transcribed to produce a functional RNA. There are two types of molecular genes: protein-coding genes and noncoding genes. During gene expression, the DNA is first copied into RNA. The RNA can be directly functional or be the intermediate template for a protein that performs a function. The transmission of genes to an organism's offspring is the basis of the inheritance of phenotypic traits. These genes make up different DNA sequences called genotypes. Genotypes along with environmental and developmental factors determine what the phenotypes will be. Most biological traits are under the influence of polygenes (many different genes) as well as gen ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Peripheral Membrane Protein
Peripheral membrane proteins, or extrinsic membrane proteins, are membrane proteins that adhere only temporarily to the biological membrane with which they are associated. These proteins attach to integral membrane proteins, or penetrate the peripheral regions of the lipid bilayer. The regulatory protein subunits of many ion channels and transmembrane receptors, for example, may be defined as peripheral membrane proteins. In contrast to integral membrane proteins, peripheral membrane proteins tend to collect in the water-soluble component, or fraction, of all the proteins extracted during a protein purification procedure. Proteins with GPI anchors are an exception to this rule and can have purification properties similar to those of integral membrane proteins. The reversible attachment of proteins to biological membranes has shown to regulate cell signaling and many other important cellular events, through a variety of mechanisms. For example, the close association between many enzy ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Tight Junction
Tight junctions, also known as occluding junctions or ''zonulae occludentes'' (singular, ''zonula occludens''), are multiprotein junctional complexes whose canonical function is to prevent leakage of solutes and water and seals between the epithelial cells. They also play a critical role maintaining the structure and permeability of endothelial cells. Tight junctions may also serve as leaky pathways by forming selective channels for small cations, anions, or water. The corresponding junctions that occur in invertebrates are septate junctions. Structure Tight junctions are composed of a branching network of sealing strands, each strand acting independently from the others. Therefore, the efficiency of the junction in preventing ion passage increases exponentially with the number of strands. Each strand is formed from a row of transmembrane proteins embedded in both plasma membranes, with extracellular domains joining one another directly. There are at least 40 different protei ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Apical (anatomy)
Standard anatomical terms of location are used to unambiguously describe the anatomy of animals, including humans. The terms, typically derived from Latin or Greek roots, describe something in its standard anatomical position. This position provides a definition of what is at the front ("anterior"), behind ("posterior") and so on. As part of defining and describing terms, the body is described through the use of anatomical planes and anatomical axes. The meaning of terms that are used can change depending on whether an organism is bipedal or quadrupedal. Additionally, for some animals such as invertebrates, some terms may not have any meaning at all; for example, an animal that is radially symmetrical will have no anterior surface, but can still have a description that a part is close to the middle ("proximal") or further from the middle ("distal"). International organisations have determined vocabularies that are often used as standard vocabularies for subdisciplines of anatom ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Paracellular
Paracellular transport refers to the transfer of substances across an epithelium by passing through the intercellular space ''between'' the cells. It is in contrast to transcellular transport, where the substances travel ''through'' the cell, passing through both the apical membrane and basolateral membrane. The distinction has particular significance in renal physiology and intestinal physiology. Transcellular transport often involves energy expenditure whereas paracellular transport is unmediated and passive down a concentration gradient, or by osmosis (for water) and solvent drag for solutes. Paracellular transport also has the benefit that absorption rate is matched to load because it has no transporters that can be saturated. In most mammals, intestinal absorption of nutrients is thought to be dominated by transcellular transport, e.g., glucose is primarily absorbed via the SGLT1 transporter and other glucose transporters. Paracellular absorption therefore plays only a minor ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Cell Polarity
Cell polarity refers to spatial differences in shape, structure, and function within a cell. Almost all cell types exhibit some form of polarity, which enables them to carry out specialized functions. Classical examples of polarized cells are described below, including epithelial cells with apical-basal polarity, neurons in which signals propagate in one direction from dendrites to axons, and migrating cells. Furthermore, cell polarity is important during many types of asymmetric cell division to set up functional asymmetries between daughter cells. Many of the key molecular players implicated in cell polarity are well conserved. For example, in metazoan cells, the PAR-3/PAR-6/aPKC complex plays a fundamental role in cell polarity. While the biochemical details may vary, some of the core principles such as negative and/or positive feedback between different molecules are common and essential to many known polarity systems. Examples of polarized cells Epithelial cells Epitheli ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Angiomotin
Angiomotin (AMOT) is a protein that in humans is encoded by the ''AMOT'' gene. It belongs to the motin family of angiostatin binding proteins, which includes angiomotin, angiomotin-like 1 ( AMOTL1) and angiomotin-like 2 ( AMOTL2) characterized by coiled-coil domains at N-terminus and consensus PDZ-binding domain at the C-terminus. Angiomotin is expressed predominantly in endothelial cells of capillaries as well as angiogenic tissues such as placenta and solid tumor. Discovery Angiomotin was discovered in 2001 by screening a placenta yeast two-hybrid cDNA library for angiostatin-binding peptides, using a construct encoding the kringle domains 1-4 of angiostatin. Gene location ''AMOT'' gene is located on human chromosome X:112,021,794-112,066,354, containing 3252 nucleotides in coding sequence as 11 exons. Protein structure Two splice isoforms are known for angiomotin: p80 and p130. The alternative splicing is somewhat tissue specific. Cells expressing p130 contained more a ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Endothelial Cell
The endothelium is a single layer of squamous endothelial cells that line the interior surface of blood vessels and lymphatic vessels. The endothelium forms an interface between circulating blood or lymph in the lumen and the rest of the vessel wall. Endothelial cells form the barrier between vessels and tissue and control the flow of substances and fluid into and out of a tissue. Endothelial cells in direct contact with blood are called vascular endothelial cells whereas those in direct contact with lymph are known as lymphatic endothelial cells. Vascular endothelial cells line the entire circulatory system, from the heart to the smallest capillaries. These cells have unique functions that include fluid filtration, such as in the glomerulus of the kidney, blood vessel tone, hemostasis, neutrophil recruitment, and hormone trafficking. Endothelium of the interior surfaces of the heart chambers is called endocardium. An impaired function can lead to serious health issues throug ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
