Beta-keratin

β-keratin or beta-keratin (not to be confused with β-carotene) is rich in stacked β pleated sheets, in contrast to alpha-keratin, a fibrous protein rich in alpha helices.

β-keratin is found in reptiles.[1][2] It adds much more rigidity to reptilian skin than alpha-keratin does to mammalian skin.

β-keratin is impregnated into the stratum corneum of the reptilian skin, providing waterproofing and the prevention of desiccation.

In birds, beaks, claws and feathers also contain β-keratin.

The small alvarezsaurid dinosaur Shuvuuia deserti showed evidence of a featherlike skin covering. Analysis by Schweitzer et al. (1999) showed that these featherlike structures consisted of beta-keratin.[3]

References

  1. ^ Dalla Valle L, Nardi A, Belvedere P, Toni M, Alibardi L (July 2007). "Beta-keratins of differentiating epidermis of snake comprise glycine-proline-serine-rich proteins with an avian-like gene organization". Dev. Dyn. 236 (7): 1939–53. doi:10.1002/dvdy.21202. PMID 17576619. 
  2. ^ Dalla Valle L, Nardi A, Toffolo V, Niero C, Toni M, Alibardi L (February 2007). "Cloning and characterization of scale beta-keratins in the differentiating epidermis of geckoes show they are glycine-proline-serine-rich proteins with a central motif homologous to avian beta-keratins". Dev. Dyn. 236 (2): 374–88. doi:10.1002/dvdy.21022. PMID 17191254. 
  3. ^ .Schweitzer, Mary Higby, Watt, J.A., Avci, R., Knapp, L., Chiappe, L, Norell, Mark A., Marshall, M. (1999). "Beta-Keratin Specific Immunological reactivity in Feather-Like Structures of the Cretaceous Alvarezsaurid, Shuvuuia deserti Journal of Experimental Biology (Mol Dev Evol) 255:146-157

External links

Human
A1, A2, B, C1, G1, G2
I (MYO1A, MYO1B, MYO1C, MYO1D, MYO1E, MYO1F, MYO1G, MYO1H) · II (MYH1, MYH2, MYH3, MYH4, MYH6, MYH7, MYH7B, MYH8, MYH9, MYH10, MYH11, MYH13, MYH14, MYH15, MYH16) · III (MYO3A, MYO3B) · V (MYO5A, MYO5B, MYO5C) · VI (MYO6) · VII (MYO7A, MYO7B) · IX (MYO9A, MYO9B) · X (MYO10) · XV (MYO15A) · XVIII (MYO18A, MYO18B) · LC (MYL1, MYL2, MYL3, MYL4, MYL5, MYL6, MYL6B, MYL7, MYL9, MYLIP, MYLK, MYLK2, MYLL1)
Other

Tropomodulin (1, 2, 3, 4) · Troponin (T 1 2 3, C 1 2, I 1 2 3) · Tropomyosin (1, 2, 3, 4)

Actinin (1, 2, 3, 4) · Arp2/3 complex · actin depolymerizing factors (Cofilin (1, 2) · Destrin) · Gelsolin · Profilin (1, 2) · Titin
Other
Type 1/2
(Keratin,
Cytokeratin)
Epithelial keratins
(soft alpha-keratins)

type I/chromosome 17 (10, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 19, 20) · chromosome 12 (18) · none (21)

type II/chromosome 12 (1, 2A, 3, 4, 5, 6A, 6B, 7, 8, 9)
Hair keratins
(hard alpha-keratins)
Ungrouped alpha
Not alpha
Beta-keratin
Type 3
Type 4
Type 5
KIF1A, KIF1B, KIF2A, KIF2C, KIF3B, KIF3C, KIF4A, KIF4B, KIF5A, KIF5B, KIF5C, KIF6, KIF7, KIF9, KIF11, KIF12, KIF13A, KIF13B, KIF14, KIF15, KIF16B, KIF17, KIF18A, KIF18B, KIF19, KIF20A, KIF20B, KIF21A, KIF21B, KIF22, KIF23, KIF24, KIF25, KIF26A, KIF26B, KIF27, KIFC1, KIFC2, KIFC3

axonemal: DNAH1, DNAH2, DNAH3, DNAH5, DNAH6, DNAH7, DNAH8, DNAH9, DNAH10, DNAH11, DNAH12, DNAH13, DNAH14, DNAH17, DNAI1, DNAI2, DNALI1, DNAL1, DNAL4

cytoplasmic: DYNC1H1, DYNC2H1, DYNC1I1, DYNC1I2, DYNC1LI1, DYNC1LI2, DYNC2LI1, DYNLL1, DYNLL2, DYNLRB1, DYNLRB2, DYNLT1, DYNLT3
Other
Tau protein · Dynactin (DCTN1) · Tubulins (TUBA1A, TUBA1B, TUBA1C, TUBA3C, TUBA3D, TUBA3E, TUBA4A, TUBA8) · Stathmin · Tektin (TEKT1, TEKT2, TEKT3, TEKT4, TEKT5) · Dynamin (DNM1, DNM2, DNM3)
Other
Nonhuman
see also cytoskeletal defects
B strc: edmb (perx), skel (ctrs), epit, cili, mito, nucl (chro)

There are two main forms of keratin, alpha-keratin and beta-keratin. Alpha-keratin is seen in humans and other mammals, beta-keratin is present in birds and reptiles. Beta-keratin is harder than alpha-keratin. Structurally alpha-keratin have alpha-helical coiled coil structure while beta-keratin have twisted beta sheet structure.bIn the case of β-sheets, this allows sterically-unhindered hydrogen bonding between the amino and carboxyl groups of peptide bonds on adjacent protein chains, facilitating their close alignment and strong binding. Fibrous keratin molecules can twist around each other to form helical intermediate filaments.

SILK:- The secondary structure of silk is an example of the beta pleated sheet. In this structure, individual protein chains are aligned side-by-side with every other protein chain aligned in an opposite direction.The chains are antiparallel, with an alternating C → N orientation. The protein chains are held together by intermolecular hydrogen bonding, that is hydrogen bonding between amide groups of two separate chains. This intermolecular hydrogen bonding in the beta-pleated sheet is in contrast to the intramolecular hydrogen bonding in the alpha-helix.

The hydrogen on the amide of one protein chain is hydrogen bonded to the amide oxygen of the neighboring protein chain. The pleated sheet effect arises form the fact that the amide structure is planar while the "bends" occur at the carbon containing the side chain.

Fortunately, the "side" chain R groups in silk are not very bulky. The basic primary structure of silk consists of a six amino acid unit that repeats itself. The sequence where every other unit is glycine in silk is: -gly-ala-gly-ala-gly-ala-. Although glycine and alanine make up 75-80% of the amino acids in silk, another 10-15% is serine and the final 10 % contain bulky side chains such as in tyr, arg, val, asp, and glu.