Periostin is a disulfide linked 90 kDa, 811 amino acid protein originally isolated as a osteoblast-specific factor that functions as a cell adhesion molecule for preosteoblasts and is thought to be involved in osteoblast recruitment, attachment and spreading. Additionally, periostin expression has previously been shown to be significantly increased by both transforming growth factor beta 1(TGF beta 1) and bone morphogenetic protein (BMP2). Periostin has a typical signal sequence, followed by

All eukaryotic cells express Actin, which often constitutes as much as 50% of total cellular protein. Actin filaments can form both stable and labile structures and are crucial components of microvilli and the contractile apparatus of muscle cells. While lower eukaryotes, such as yeast, have only one Actin gene, higher eukaryotes have several isoforms encoded by a family of genes. At least six types of Actin are present in mammalian tissues and fall into three classes. alpha-Actin expressio

Cytochrome c oxidase (COX) is the terminal enzyme of the mitochondrial respiratory chain. It is a multi-subunit enzyme complex that couples the transfer of electrons from cytochrome c to molecular oxygen and contributes to a proton electrochemical gradient across the inner mitochondrial membrane. The complex consists of 13 mitochondrial- and nuclear-encoded subunits. The mitochondrially-encoded subunits perform the electron transfer and proton pumping activities. The functions of the nuclear

This gene encodes a member of the ADAM (a disintegrin and metalloprotease domain) family. Members of this family are membrane-anchored proteins structurally related to snake venom disintegrins, and have been implicated in a variety of biologic processes involving cell-cell and cell-matrix interactions, including fertilization, muscle development, and neurogenesis. The protein encoded by this gene functions as a tumor necrosis factor-alpha converting enzyme; binds mitotic arrest deficient 2

This intronless gene encodes a 70kDa heat shock protein which is a member of the heat shock protein 70 family. In conjuction with other heat shock proteins, this protein stabilizes existing proteins against aggregation and mediates the folding of newly translated proteins in the cytosol and in organelles. It is also involved in the ubiquitin-proteasome pathway through interaction with the AU-rich element RNA-binding protein 1. The gene is located in the major histocompatibility complex class

Huntingtin is a protein that contains a polyglutamine region. When the number of glutamine repeats exceeds 35, the gene encodes a version of Huntingtin that leads to Huntington’s disease (HD). When the polyglutamine stretch is mutated, Huntingtin acts within the nucleus to induce neurodegeneration by a cell-specific apoptotic mechanism. Loss of Huntingtin activity is unlikely to be the cause of HD, and it has been proposed that the expanded glutamine repeat region may induce an abnormal inter