Welcome to The Attractin Site
This site is designed to collate and editorialize information on the characteristics and function of the attractin protein as new results arise.
Attractin is an enigmatic protein – discovered accidentally while searching for variants of human CD26/dipeptidyl peptidase IV. Consequent to initial characterization, however, aberrations in gene structure and expression have identified an essential role in cerebral development, in pigmentation and in measures of immune function. Abnormal genomic structure and expression in humans is associated with neurological disorders and cerebral malignancies. Fine analysis of genomic structure helped identify how intergenic LINE-1 DNA elements, initially thought of as accidentally-inserted “junk”, may function as critical regulators for variable transcript expression. The main alternative transcripts for attractin consist of a membrane form, likely the prototype and highly conserved across the animal kingdom, and a secreted form circulating at relatively high levels (in primates in particular) with significant variation in inflammatory and other disorders.
Nevertheless, due to its broad involvement in physiological processes, understanding of function lags behind analysis of regulation. The data today points to a role in vesicular transport and extracellular secretion of positively-charged paracrine peptides including the possibility that it may aid presentation of such peptides to their respective receptors.
The centralization of new information here will aid and focus insight into attractin function.
Attractin is an enigmatic protein – discovered accidentally while searching for variants of human CD26/dipeptidyl peptidase IV. Consequent to initial characterization, however, aberrations in gene structure and expression have identified an essential role in cerebral development, in pigmentation and in measures of immune function. Abnormal genomic structure and expression in humans is associated with neurological disorders and cerebral malignancies. Fine analysis of genomic structure helped identify how intergenic LINE-1 DNA elements, initially thought of as accidentally-inserted “junk”, may function as critical regulators for variable transcript expression. The main alternative transcripts for attractin consist of a membrane form, likely the prototype and highly conserved across the animal kingdom, and a secreted form circulating at relatively high levels (in primates in particular) with significant variation in inflammatory and other disorders.
Nevertheless, due to its broad involvement in physiological processes, understanding of function lags behind analysis of regulation. The data today points to a role in vesicular transport and extracellular secretion of positively-charged paracrine peptides including the possibility that it may aid presentation of such peptides to their respective receptors.
The centralization of new information here will aid and focus insight into attractin function.
