Chapter category: Cell Metabolism
Nematode Annexins
Annexins: Molecular Structure to Cellular Function
Edited by: Barbara A. SeatonISBN: 1-57059-316-7
» Get more information about this book at landesbioscience.com «
Chapter authors:
Carl E. Creutz
A major challenge in the annexin field at present is to clearly define the physiological roles of these proteins. One of the most promising approaches to determine the functions of annexins will be through genetic manipulation. Alteration in the expression level or structure of endogenous annexins by modifying the genes for these proteins should result in model organisms in which the physiological processes dependent upon annexin functions will be revealed. We have initiated studies of the nematode, C. elegans, for this purpose and provide here a brief summary of our initial biochemical and localization results which will be described more fully elsewhere.1 We have determined that the nematode expresses at least one major annexin and has genes for at least two other annexins. The nematode is a particularly attractive model organism for these studies. It has a wide variety of cell and tissue types so that differential functions of annexins may be distinguished. There is a very active genomic sequencing effort on the nematode so that a complete physical map of the genome is available as well as cosmids for any portion of the genome. The expression of transgenes may be performed by microinjection of the ovary.2 And most importantly, it is possible to isolate mutant worms with transposon insertions in any molecularly defined gene.3,4
Additional chapters from this book:
Nematode Annexins
Carl E. Creutz
A major challenge in the annexin field at present is to clearly define the physiological roles of these proteins. One of the most promising approaches to determine the functions of annexins wi...
Transgenic Mouse Models: Studying the Function of Annexin VI In Vivo
Ann–Marie Gunteski–Hamblin and John R. Dedman
Transgenic mouse models have become powerful tools to study the func–tion of specific proteins in vivo. Current technology allows for the targeted overexpression of a specific gene to a s...
Clinical Applications of Annexins
Jonathan F. Tait
The discovery of the annexin protein family has led to much basic research on the structures, biochemical properties, and possible functions of these proteins. Although the physiological funct...
Annexin V and Cell Surface–Expressed Phosphatidylserine: A Revealing Pas de Deux
Chris P.M. Reutelingsperger and Waander L. van Heerde
Annexin V acquired the green card for its membership of the annexin family in 1987 when its primary structure was reported for the first time.1 Before 1987 annexin V was investigate...
The Biology of Annexin I
A. Ahluwalia, J. C. Buckingham, J. D. Croxtall, R. J. Flower, N. J. Goulding and M. Perretti
This chapter specifically addresses work which relates to the biological role of annexin I (generally referred to in our publications as lipocortin1) and its link with the actions of ho...
Annexin XI: A Calcyclin–Associated Nuclear Protein
Hiroyoshi Hidaka and Naoto Mamiya
Annexin XI, a novel annexin, was found as a protein with an apparent molecular weight of 50 kDa that bound to calcyclin in a calcium dependent manner. Therefore it was first termed CAP–50...
Annexin/Protein Interactions: Clues for Function
Adrian Sheldon and James M. Chen
The physiological roles of many proteins are often dictated by interac–tion with other proteins, enzymes or other ligands. The identification of such interactions can thus help to elucida...
Ca2+–Independent Functions of Annexins
A. Louise Upton, Helena C. Edwards and Stephen E. Moss
The annexins and the E–F hand proteins are the two largest families of calcium–binding proteins. The two groups are distinguished not only by their numerical size, but also by the ex...
Annexin Binding to Lipid Assemblies
Paul Meers
Proteins that transiently and peripherally associate with biological mem–branes are emerging as a large and important group responsible for some of the basic functions of cells. It has be...
Annexin Functions in Phagocytic Leukocytes
Joel D. Ernst
By a variety of approaches, annexins have been discovered as abundant proteins in phagocytic leukocytes. No essential role for any of the annexins has been firmly established, but recent studi...
Annexins and Membrane Traffic
Volker Gerke
Intracellular membrane traffic and the direction of flow of macromol–ecules within eukaryotic cells has attracted cell biologists for a long time. The extensive research in this area has ...
A Mutational Approach to Elucidate Annexin V Function
Begoña Campos, Jorge M. Naciff and John R. Dedman
Annexins mediate the intracellular calcium (Ca2+) signal by binding phospholipids in a Ca2+–dependent manner. Members of this protein family have been found in diffe...
A Common Trimer of Annexin V as a Basic Unit in 2D and 3D Crystal Forms
Alain Brisson and Anita Lewit–Bentley
Annexins constitute a family of proteins which share the property of binding to lipid membranes in a calcium–dependent manner.1–5 The binding of annexins to phospholipid s...
Three Dimensional Structure of Annexin IV
R. Bryan Sutton and Stephen R. Sprang
In this chapter we explore the architecture of annexin IV as revealed by X–ray crystallography. As the structure of this protein was only recently determined in our laboratory, we shall f...
Annexin V Molecular Structure, Ligand Binding and Biological Function
Barbara A. Seaton
This chapter introduces the molecular features that give rise to com–mon annexin properties. The first section describes the three dimensional structure of annexin V, the "prototypical" a...
Annexin Gene Structure
Nicholas J. Nevid and Nelson D. Horseman
The annexins comprise a relatively large family of calcium- and phos-pholipid-binding proteins. There are at least 10 distinct annexins in vertebrates (annexins I-VIII, XI and XIII), and addit...
