CRYβA3/A1-Crystallin Knockout Develops Nuclear Cataract and Causes Impaired Lysosomal Cargo Clearance and Calpain Activation.

ABSTRACT: βA3/A1-crystallin is an abundant structural protein of the lens that is very critical for lens function. Many different genetic mutations have been shown to associate with different types of cataracts in humans and in animal models. βA3/A1-crystallin has four Greek key-motifs that organize into two crystallin domains. It shown to bind calcium with moderate affinity and has putative calcium-binding site. Other than in the lens, βA3/A1 is also expressed in retinal astrocytes, retinal pigment epithelial (RPE) cells, and retinal ganglion cells. The function of βA3/A1-crystallin in the retinal cell types is well studied; however, a clear understanding of the function of this protein in the lens has not yet been established. In the current study, we generated the βA3/A1-crystallin knockout (KO)

SUBMITTER: Hegde S 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC4749210 | biostudies-literature | 2016

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature