MAP2 is the major microtubule associated protein of brain tissue. There are three forms of MAP2; two are similarily sized with apparent molecular weights of 280 kDa (MAP2a and MAP2b) and the third with a lower molecular weight of 70 kDa (MAP2c). In the newborn rat brain, MAP2b and MAP2c are present, while MAP2a is absent. Between postnatal days 10 and 20, MAP2a appears. At the same time, the level of MAP2c drops by 10-fold. This change happens during the period when dendrite growth is compl
This gene encodes a protein serine/threonine kinase that is activated when bound to the GTP-bound form of Rho. The small GTPase Rho regulates formation of focal adhesions and stress fibers of fibroblasts, as well as adhesion and aggregation of platelets and lymphocytes by shuttling between the inactive GDP-bound form and the active GTP-bound form. Rho is also essential in cytokinesis and plays a role in transcriptional activation by serum response factor. This protein, a downstream effecto
This gene encodes a protein serine/threonine kinase that is activated when bound to the GTP-bound form of Rho. The small GTPase Rho regulates formation of focal adhesions and stress fibers of fibroblasts, as well as adhesion and aggregation of platelets and lymphocytes by shuttling between the inactive GDP-bound form and the active GTP-bound form. Rho is also essential in cytokinesis and plays a role in transcriptional activation by serum response factor. This protein, a downstream effecto
Vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF), originally known as vascular permeability factor (VPF), is a signal protein produced by cells that stimulates the formation of blood vessels. To be specific, VEGF is a sub-family of growth factors, the platelet-derived growth factor family of cystine-knot growth factors. They are important signaling proteins involved in both vasculogenesis (the de novo formation of the embryonic circulatory system) and angiogenesis (the growth of blood vessels from pr
Component of the sarcoglycan complex, a subcomplex of the dystrophin-glycoprotein complex which forms a link between the F-actin cytoskeleton and the extracellular matrix.
Lipoprotein lipase (LPL) is the central enzyme in plasma triglyceride hydrolysis and is secreted by macrophages in the subendothelial space. Evidence has been provided that LPL produced by macrophages in the vessel wall exerts proatherogenic effects. The atherogenic effects of LPL have been mainly attributed to its ability to favor lipid accumulation within macrophages present in the atherosclerotic lesion. Recently, it has also been shown that LPL promote the development of atherosclerosis th