Marszal Ewa, Shrake Andrew
Division of Hematology, Office of Blood Research and Review, Center for Biologics Evaluation and Research, Food and Drug Administration, Bethesda, MD 20892, USA.
Arch Biochem Biophys. 2006 Sep 1;453(1):123-9. doi: 10.1016/j.abb.2006.03.006. Epub 2006 Mar 23.
Serpins are a family of structurally homologous proteins having metastable native structures. As a result, a serpin variant destabilized by mutation(s) has a tendency to undergo conformational changes leading to inactive forms, e.g., the latent form and polymer. Serpin polymers are involved in a number of conformational diseases. Although several models for polymer structure have been proposed, the actual structure remains unknown. Here, we provide a comprehensive list of serpins, both free and in complexes, deposited in the Protein Data Bank. Our discussion focuses on structures that potentially can contribute to a better understanding of polymer structure.
