alpha-Crystallins (alpha-Crystallin)

A subclass of crystallins that provides the majority of refractive power and translucency to the lens (LENS, CRYSTALLINE) in VERTEBRATES. Alpha-crystallins also act as molecular chaperones that bind to denatured proteins, keep them in solution and thereby maintain the translucency of the lens. The proteins exist as large oligomers that are formed from ALPHA-CRYSTALLIN A CHAIN and ALPHA-CRYSTALLIN B CHAIN subunits.

Also Known As:

Networked: 197 relevant articles (6 outcomes, 17 trials/studies)

Relationship Network

Bio-Agent Context: Research Results

Experts

1.	Reddy, G Bhanuprakash: 8 articles (01/2008 - 07/2002)
2.	Andley, Usha P: 5 articles (01/2016 - 10/2003)
3.	Reddy, P Yadagiri: 5 articles (01/2008 - 07/2002)
4.	Kumar, P Anil: 5 articles (12/2007 - 04/2004)
5.	Kumar, M Satish: 4 articles (12/2007 - 04/2004)
6.	Wilkinson, Katalin A: 4 articles (07/2007 - 02/2005)
7.	Wilkinson, Robert J: 4 articles (07/2007 - 02/2005)
8.	Harding, John J: 4 articles (05/2007 - 06/2002)
9.	Yan, Hong: 4 articles (05/2007 - 12/2003)
10.	MacRae, Thomas H: 4 articles (10/2003 - 02/2002)

Related Diseases

1.	Cataract (Cataracts) 07/01/2009 - "In this study, we investigated the antiglycating potential of cumin in vitro and its ability to modulate the chaperone-like activity of alpha-crystallin vis-à-vis the progression of diabetic cataract in vivo. " 12/01/2008 - "alpha-Crystallin index measurements may be useful in identifying patients at high risk for cataracts and as an outcome variable in clinical lens studies. " 10/01/2003 - "This study has identified the first dominant cataract mutation in CRYAA located outside the phylogenetically conserved 'alpha-crystallin core domain' of the sHSP family." 07/01/1998 - "The study of the binding of alpha-crystallin to membranes is potentially important for understanding the function of alpha-crystallin in the ocular lens and the formation of cataracts. " 01/01/2016 - "Autophagy and UPR in alpha-crystallin mutant knock-in mouse models of hereditary cataracts."
2.	Inflammation 10/15/2005 - "The neuroprotective efficacy of alpha-crystallin against acute inflammation in mice." 03/01/2006 - "This study was designed to investigate the prophylactic effect of alpha-crystallin, a major chaperone lens protein comprising of alpha-A and alpha-B subunits in inflammation induced mice. " 06/10/2005 - "The in vitro study has shown that alpha-crystallin treatment not only suppresses the increase in LPO levels but also inhibits the lipid breakdown resulting from autooxidation in mouse cerebral cortex homogenate, and strongly suggests that alpha-crystallin therapy may serve as a potent pharmacological agent in systemic inflammation." 06/10/2005 - "This study was designed to investigate the prophylactic effect of alpha-crystallin, a major chaperone lens protein comprising of alpha-A and alpha-B subunits in inflammation-induced mice. " 03/01/2006 - "Mice were divided into three groups (n=6 in each), control, inflammation and alpha-crystallin treated. "
3.	Shock 04/01/2001 - "Study of the chaperoning mechanism of bovine lens alpha-crystallin, a member of the alpha-small heat shock superfamily." 08/06/2010 - "The lens also contains high concentrations of the small heat shock chaperone alpha-crystallin, which suppresses aggregation of model substrates in vitro. " 01/01/2003 - "The brine shrimp, Artemia franciscana, produces a small heat shock/alpha-crystallin protein termed p26, found in embryos undergoing encystment, diapause, and metabolic arrest. " 02/01/2002 - "Oviparously developing embryos of the brine shrimp, Artemia franciscana, synthesize abundant quantities of a small heat shock/alpha-crystallin protein, termed p26. " 02/01/2002 - "Functional analysis of a small heat shock/alpha-crystallin protein from Artemia franciscana. "
4.	Tuberculosis (Tuberculoses) 01/01/1999 - "tuberculosis is dominated by increased synthesis of the alpha-crystallin homolog sHsp16, previously implicated in stationary-phase processes and found in this study to be a major M. " 09/01/2001 - "The fact that antibody to Acr is found in a high percentage of tuberculosis patients suggests that the hypoxic shiftdown of tubercle bacilli to the NRP state that occurs in vitro, resulting in production of the alpha-crystallin protein, occurs in vivo as well. " 03/01/2002 - "tuberculosis genes acr/hspX/Rv2031c (alpha-crystallin homolog) and Rv2032/acg (acr-coregulated gene) by using a promoter-GFP fusion assay in Mycobacterium bovis BCG. " 06/19/2001 - "tuberculosis alpha-crystallin (acr) gene is powerfully and rapidly induced at reduced oxygen tensions, providing us with a means to identify regulators of the hypoxic response. " 06/15/2007 - "tuberculosis antigens (early secreted antigenic target 6, culture filtrate protein 10, TB10.3, and alpha-crystallin 2) were less affected, indicating a high prevalence of latent tuberculosis (approximately 80%) in both HIV-negative and HIV-positive subject groups. "
5.	Neurodegenerative Diseases (Neurodegenerative Disease) 01/01/2016 - "Overall this review points out the novel roles that chaperones such as alpha-crystallins can play outside of the classical protein folding pathways, and their potential in the development of new therapies for the treatment of neuroinflammatory/neurodegenerative diseases. " 10/10/2008 - "Thus, our study ascribes a novel functional role to alpha-crystallins in Cu(2+) homeostasis and helps in understanding their protective role in neurodegenerative diseases and cataract." 02/01/2011 - "New focus on alpha-crystallins in retinal neurodegenerative diseases." 01/01/2007 - "Although tau aggregation and alphaB-crystallin expression have been shown to increase in neurodegenerative diseases, surprisingly tau expression increases in the alpha-crystallin knockout lenses, suggesting that alphaA- and alphaB-crystallins are potentially important regulators of tau expression in lens." 09/26/2008 - "Small heat shock proteins (sHSPs) and the related alpha-crystallins are ubiquitous chaperones linked to neurodegenerative diseases, myopathies, and cataract. "

Related Drugs and Biologics

1.	Crystallins (Crystallin)
2.	gamma-Crystallins
3.	Carnosine
4.	Amyloid (Amyloid Fibrils)
5.	Tryptophan (L-Tryptophan)
6.	Molecular Chaperones (Chaperone, Molecular)
7.	Antibodies
8.	Calpain
9.	naphthalene
10.	Zinc

Related Therapies and Procedures

1.	Lenses
2.	Lasers (Laser)
3.	Drug Therapy (Chemotherapy)
4.	Fluid Therapy (Oral Rehydration Therapy)