Role of short-range protein interactions in lens opacifications

[摘要] At high protein concentrations found in the lens, short-range orderof lens proteins results in a medium of relatively constant proteindensity and refractive index that minimizes scattering of light. Duringaging and cataractogenesis of the lens, formation of high molecularweight aggregates causes fluctuations in this protein density, resultingin light scattering and a concomitant decrease in transparency, witheventual lens opacification. This review summarizes what is known aboutthe molecular nature of short-range order, both in the normal andcataractous lens, then hypothesizes that part of this order involvesheterologous crystallin interactions that may be necessary for themaintenance of lens transparency. A summary of past and possible futureexperimental approaches will be reviewed that can be used to ascertainthe existence of these interactions and their possible changes duringlens opacification.

[学科分类] 生物化学/生物物理