title: From anemia to cerebellar dysfunction. A review of the ankyrin gene family.
abstract: The focus of this review is on the ankyrin gene family, key elements in the interaction of the spectrin-based membrane skeleton with the plasma membrane in a variety of tissues and multicellular organisms. The structure/function relationships of ankyrin molecules are reviewed, illustrating how these proteins are uniquely suited to serve as adaptors between the membrane skeleton and a number of integral membrane proteins. Advances in the understanding of ankyrin biology in the brain are discussed and used to show how ankyrins may be involved in the establishment and/or maintenance of specialized plasma membrane domains. Finally, recent research in hematological and neurological disorders are reviewed, suggesting that ankyrins have a role in the development of human disease.
authors.affiliation: Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Duke University Medical Center, Durham 27710.
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Lambert
authors.forename: V
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Bennett
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D017487:Ankyrins / Q000502:physiology*; D002462:Cell Membrane / Q000502:physiology* / Q000648:ultrastructure; D004910:Erythrocyte Membrane / Q000502:physiology / Q000648:ultrastructure; D005796:Genes; D006801:Humans; D005810:Multigene Family; D011485:Protein Binding
chemical_list: D017487:Ankyrins