Caspase 12
| caspase 12 | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Identifiers | |||||||
| Symbol | CASP12 | ||||||
| Alt. symbols | CASP12P1 | ||||||
| NCBI gene | 120329 | ||||||
| HGNC | 19004 | ||||||
| OMIM | 608633 | ||||||
| RefSeq | NR_000035 | ||||||
| UniProt | Q6UXS9 | ||||||
| Other data | |||||||
| Locus | Chr. 11 q22.3 | ||||||
| |||||||
Caspase 12 is an enzyme known as a cysteine protease. It belongs to a family of enzymes called caspases that cleave their substrates at C-terminal aspartic acid residues. It is closely related to caspase 1 and other members of the caspase family, known as inflammatory caspases, which process and activate inflammatory cytokines such as interleukin 1 and interleukin 18.
Gene
CASP12, the gene for caspase 12, is found on chromosome 11 in humans in a locus with other inflammatory caspases.[1] CASP12 orthologs[2] have been identified in numerous mammals for which complete genome data are available.
Clinical significance
The CASP12 gene is subject to polymorphism, which can generate a full length caspase protein (Csp12L) or an inactive truncated form (Csp12S). The functional form appears to be confined to people of African descent and is linked with susceptibility to sepsis; people carrying the functional gene have decreased responses to bacterial molecules such as lipopolysaccharide (LPS).[3][4]
A study in May 2009 by McGill University Health Centre has suggested that estrogen may serve to block the production of caspase-12, resulting in a stronger inflammatory reaction to bacterial pathogens. The trials were carried out on laboratory mice which had been implanted with the human caspase-12 gene.[5][6][7]
The inactive truncated form (Csp12S) of the CASP12 gene was spread and nearly fixed in non-African populations due to positive selection beginning perhaps 60–100 thousand years ago. Its selective advantage is thought to be sepsis resistance in populations that experienced more infectious diseases as population sizes and densities increased[8][9]. An example of "less is more"[10] in humans.
References
- ^ Fischer H, Koenig U, Eckhart L, Tschachler E (2002). "Human caspase 12 has acquired deleterious mutations". Biochem. Biophys. Res. Commun. 293 (2): 722–6. doi:10.1016/S0006-291X(02)00289-9. PMID 12054529.
{{cite journal}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) - ^ "OrthoMaM phylogenetic marker: CASP12 coding sequence".
- ^ Saleh M, Vaillancourt JP, Graham RK, Huyck M, Srinivasula SM, Alnemri ES, Steinberg MH, Nolan V, Baldwin CT, Hotchkiss RS, Buchman TG, Zehnbauer BA, Hayden MR, Farrer LA, Roy S, Nicholson DW (2004). "Differential modulation of endotoxin responsiveness by human caspase-12 polymorphisms". Nature. 429 (6987): 75–9. doi:10.1038/nature02451. PMID 15129283.
{{cite journal}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) - ^ Saleh, Maya Mathison, John C. Wolinski, Melissa K. Bensinger, Steve J. Fitzgerald, Patrick Droin, Nathalie Ulevitch, Richard J. Green, Douglas R. Nicholson, Donald W. (2006). "Enhanced bacterial clearance and sepsis resistance in caspase-12-deficient mice". Nature. 440 (7087): 1064–1068. doi:10.1038/nature04656. PMID 16625199.
{{cite journal}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) - ^ Yeretssian G, Doiron K, Shao W, Leavitt BR, Hayden MR, Nicholson DW, Saleh M (2009). "Gender differences in expression of the human caspase-12 long variant determines susceptibility to Listeria monocytogenes infection". Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A. 106 (22): 9016–20. doi:10.1073/pnas.0813362106. PMC 2690057. PMID 19447924.
{{cite journal}}: Unknown parameter|month=ignored (help)CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) - ^ "Man flu: real or myth?". Health. NHS UK. 2009-05-18.
{{cite web}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter:|coauthors=(help) - ^ "Women 'fight off disease better'". Health. BBC News. 2009-05-13. Retrieved 2009-05-13.
{{cite web}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter:|coauthors=(help) - ^ http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0002929707637033
- ^ http://www.plosbiology.org/article/info%3Adoi%2F10.1371%2Fjournal.pbio.0040052
- ^ http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0002929707616528
External links
 | This article on a gene on human chromosome 11 is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it. |