HGD is a 445 amino acid protein that belongs to the homogentisate dioxygenase family and is involved in the pathway of amino acid degradation. Expressed at high levels in kidney, colon, liver, prostate and small intestine, HGD uses iron as a cofactor to catalyze the oxygen-dependent conversion of homogentisate to 4-maleylacetoacetate, a reaction that is the fourth step in the creation of L-phenylalanine from fumarate and acetoacetic acid. Defects in the gene encoding HGD are the cause of alk

This gene encodes one of seven subunits of the human Arp2/3 protein complex. The Arp2/3 protein complex has been implicated in the control of actin polymerization in cells and has been conserved through evolution. The exact role of the protein encoded by this gene, the p34 subunit, has yet to be determined. Two alternatively spliced variants have been characterized to date. Additional alternatively spliced variants have been described but their full length nature has not been determined. [prov

In contrast to the rapid early-onset weight gain seen in ob/ob mice (1-3), mutations in the tub gene lead to obesity gradually and strongly resemble late-onset obesity as seen in the human population (4). In addition to excessive deposition of adipose tissue, mice with the tub phenotype also suffer retinal degeneration and neurosensory hearing loss (4-6). The tripartite character of tubby phenotype is strikingly similar to human obesity syndromes such as Alstr鰉 (5) and Bardet-Biedl (6). A c

The features of hemochromatosis include cirrhosis of the liver, diabetes, hypermelanotic pigmentation of the skin, and heart failure. Since hemochromatosis is a relatively easily treated disorder if diagnosed, this is a form of preventable cancer. The HFE protein, which is defective in hereditary hemo-chromatosis, normally is expressed in crypt enterocytes of the duodenum where it has a unique, predominantly intracellular localization. In placenta, the HFE protein co-localizes with and forms