C3 And PZP Like Alpha-2-Macroglobulin Domain Containing Protein 8 (CPaMD8)

CPAMD8 belongs to the complement component-3 (C3)/alpha-2-macroglobulin (A2M) family of proteins, which are involved in innate immunity and damage control. Complement components recognize and eliminate pathogens by direct binding or by mediating opsonization/phagocytosis and intracellular killing, and A2M is a broad-spectrum protease inhibitor.The deduced 1,884-amino acid protein shares 35% identity with 643 C-terminal amino acids of A2M. RT-PCR ELISA detected moderate to high CPAMD8 expression in all tissues and brain regions examined. Highest expression was in spinal cord, and lowest was in pancreas.CPAMD8 is membrane associated via ionic interaction. In glioma and rhabdomyosarcoma cell lines, CPAMD8 expression was upregulated in response to immune stimulants.