Functions
| Function | Glycoproteins |
|---|---|
| Structural molecule | Collagens |
| Lubricant and protective agent | Mucins |
| Transport molecule | Transferrin, ceruloplasmin |
| Immunologic molecule | Immunoglobins, histocompatibility antigens |
| Hormone | Human chorionic gonadotropin (HCG), thyroid-stimulating hormone (TSH) |
| Enzyme | Various, e.g., alkaline phosphatase |
| Cell attachment-recognition site | Various proteins involved in cell–cell (e.g., sperm–oocyte), virus–cell, bacterium–cell, and hormone–cell interactions |
| Antifreeze protein | Certain plasma proteins of coldwater fish |
| Interact with specific carbohydrates | Lectins, selectins (cell adhesion lectins), antibodies |
| Receptor | Various proteins involved in hormone and drug action |
| Affect folding of certain proteins | Calnexin, calreticulin |
| Regulation of development | Notch and its analogs, key proteins in development |
| Hemostasis (and thrombosis) | Specific glycoproteins on the surface membranes of platelets |
Read more about this topic: Glycoprotein
Famous quotes containing the word functions:
“One of the most highly valued functions of used parents these days is to be the villains of their children’s lives, the people the child blames for any shortcomings or disappointments. But if your identity comes from your parents’ failings, then you remain forever a member of the child generation, stuck and unable to move on to an adulthood in which you identify yourself in terms of what you do, not what has been done to you.”
—Frank Pittman (20th century)
“Mark the babe
Not long accustomed to this breathing world;
One that hath barely learned to shape a smile,
Though yet irrational of soul, to grasp
With tiny finger—to let fall a tear;
And, as the heavy cloud of sleep dissolves,
To stretch his limbs, bemocking, as might seem,
The outward functions of intelligent man.”
—William Wordsworth (1770–1850)
“The English masses are lovable: they are kind, decent, tolerant, practical and not stupid. The tragedy is that there are too many of them, and that they are aimless, having outgrown the servile functions for which they were encouraged to multiply. One day these huge crowds will have to seize power because there will be nothing else for them to do, and yet they neither demand power nor are ready to make use of it; they will learn only to be bored in a new way.”
—Cyril Connolly (1903–1974)