Elastin function

In 2003, the van Hest group produced elastin-based side-chain polymers [123]. This research was motivated by the demonstration of the occurrence of an inverse temperature transition in a single repeat of VPGVG [124]. A methacrylate-functionalized VPGVG was synthesized and used as a monomer to perform atom transfer radical polymerization (ATRP) to produce homopolymers (Fig. 16b) or... 

Inspired by the elastin-based side-chain polymers, Lemieux et al. prepared elastin-based stimulus-responsive gold nanoparticles. To this end, they capped gold particles with a layer of a single repeat of thiol-functionalized VPGVG peptides (Fig. 17a). These nanoparticles showed LCST behavior, which was modulated by varying the pH of the solution [131]. 

Fig. 17 (a) Elastin-based stimulus-responsive gold nanoparticles. Reproduced from [131] by permission of The Royal Society of Chemistry (b) Functionalization of a glass surface with ELP. In the first step, the glass surface is aminosilylated with N-2-(aminoethyl)-3-aminopropyl-trimethoxysilane, then modified with glutaraldehyde. Subsequently, the stimulus-responsive biopolymer is covalently immobilized using reductive amination. Reproduced from [132] by permission of The Royal Society of Chemistry... 

After secretion from the cell, certain lysyl residues of tropoelastin are oxidatively deaminated to aldehydes by lysyl oxidase, the same enzyme involved in this process in collagen. However, the major cross-links formed in elastin are the desmosines, which result from the condensation of three of these lysine-derived aldehydes with an unmodified lysine to form a tetrafunctional cross-hnk unique to elastin. Once cross-linked in its mature, extracellular form, elastin is highly insoluble and extremely stable and has a very low turnover rate. Elastin exhibits a variety of random coil conformations that permit the protein to stretch and subsequently recoil during the performance of its physiologic functions. 

Many tissues, such as lung, blood vessels, and skin, require elasticity for proper function this property is fulfilled by the matrix elastic fibers, which are composed of the proteins elastin and fibrillin. 

In addition to the 20 common amino acids, proteins may contain residues created by modification of common residues already incorporated into a polypeptide (Fig. 3-8a). Among these uncommon amino acids are 4-hydroxyproline, a derivative of proline, and 5-hydroxylysine, derived from lysine. The former is found in plant cell wall proteins, and both are found in collagen, a fibrous protein of connective tissues. 6-N-Methyllysine is a constituent of myosin, a contractile protein of muscle. Another important uncommon amino acid is y-carboxyglutamate, found in the bloodclotting protein prothrombin and in certain other proteins that bind Ca2+ as part of their biological function. More complex is desmosine, a derivative of four Lys residues, which is found in the fibrous protein elastin. 

Collagen and elastin are examples of common, well-characterized fibrous proteins that serve structural functions in the body. For example, collagen and elastin are found as components of skin, connective tissue, blood vessel walls, and sclera and cornea of the eye. Each fibrous protein exhibits special mechanical properties, resulting from its unique structure, which are obtained by combining specific amino acids into reg ular, secondary structural elements. This is in contrast to globular proteins, whose shapes are the result of complex interactions between secondary, tertiary, and, sometimes, quaternary structural elements. 

Function and location of elastin Cause of Marfan syn drome Elastin is a connective tissue protein with rubber-like properties. Elastic fibers composed of elastin and glycoprotein microfibrils, such as fibrillin, are found in the lungs, the walls of large arteries, and elastic ligaments. [Note Mutations in the fibrillin gene are responsible for Marfan syndrome]... 

Copper was recognized as nutritionally essential by 1924 and has since been found to function in many cellular proteins.470-474 Copper is so broadly distributed in foods that a deficiency has only rarely been observed in humans.4743 However, animals may sometimes receive inadequate amounts because absorption of Cu2+ is antagonized by Zn2+ and because copper may be tied up by molybdate as an inert complex. There are copper-deficient desert areas of Australia where neither plants nor animals survive. Copper-deficient animals have bone defects, hair color is lacking, and hemoglobin synthesis is impaired. Cytochrome oxidase activity is low. The protein elastin of arterial walls is poorly crosslinked and the arteries are weak. Genetic defects in copper metabolism can have similar effects. 

Copper is an essential component of numerous key metalloenzymes which are critical in melanin formation, myelin formation and crosslinking of collagen and elastin. Copper plays a vital role in hemopoiesis, maintenance of vascular and skeletal integrity, and structure and function of the nervous system. Thus a deficiency of copper can lead to a variety of adverse effects such as increased fragility in bones, aneurysm formation in arteries and a loss of lysyl oxidase activity in cartilage.54 57 Articles on copper also appear in Siget1, volumes 3 and 5, all of volumes 12 and 13, and volume 14,... 

One of the key arguments for neutral site binding is the presence of (3-turns and associated conformations. This puts certain restrains on the structure of the fibrous protein. For elastin, conformations with bound calcium are likely to be inside-out with respect to hydrophobicity. Such structures are acceptable only for molecules functioning in a non-polar environment (cell-membranes) but not for a hydrated elastin fibre. Binding of calcium would stabilize a rigid inside-out conformation437. ... 

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