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Obscurins: Unassuming giants enter the spotlight
Author(s) -
Perry Nicole A.,
Ackermann Maegen A.,
Shriver Marey,
Hu LiYen R.,
KontrogianniKonstantopoulos Aikaterini
Publication year - 2013
Publication title -
iubmb life
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.132
H-Index - 113
eISSN - 1521-6551
pISSN - 1521-6543
DOI - 10.1002/iub.1157
Subject(s) - obscurin , biology , myocyte , cardiac muscle , skeletal muscle , cardiac hypertrophy , microbiology and biotechnology , function (biology) , pathological , muscle hypertrophy , titin , sarcomere , pathology , medicine , anatomy , endocrinology
Discovered about a decade ago, obscurin (∼720 kDa) is a member of a family of giant proteins expressed in striated muscle that are essential for normal muscle function. Much of what we understand about obscurin stems from its functions in cardiac and skeletal muscle. However, recent evidence has indicated that variants of obscurin (“obscurins”) are expressed in diverse cell types, where they contribute to distinct cellular processes. Dysfunction or abrogation of obscurins has also been implicated in the development of several pathological conditions, including cardiac hypertrophy and cancer. Herein, we present an overview of obscurins with an emphasis on novel findings that demonstrate their heretofore‐unsuspected importance in cell signaling and disease progression. © 2013 IUBMB Life, 65(6):479–486, 2013.