Multiple sclerosis: Difference between revisions

A protein growth factor that stimulates an antiviral defense <scene name='Multiple_sclerosis/Interferon_beta/9'>interferon-β</scene> is one of the only two known vertebrate structural genes that lacks introns.<ref name="Biochem Text">Voet, D., Voet, J.G., and C. Pratt. ''Fundamentals of Biochemistry'' 3rd Edition. Hoboken, NJ: John Wiley and Sons, 2008. Print.</ref> Interferon-β is a relatively simple biological response modifier, with several <scene name='Multiple_sclerosis/Interferon_beta_labeled/2'>identifiable regions</scene>. It consists of five <scene name='Multiple_sclerosis/Ifnb_helices_in_color/2'>alpha helices</scene>, as well as multiple interconnecting <scene name='Multiple_sclerosis/Interferon_beta_loops/3'>loop regions</scene>. Helices A, B and D run <scene name='Multiple_sclerosis/Ifnb_parallel_abd/4'>parallel to one another</scene>, and helices C and E run <scene name='Multiple_sclerosis/Ifnb_antiparallel/3'>anti-parallel</scene> to the other three helices, but <scene name='Multiple_sclerosis/Ifnb_antiparallel_ce/4'>parallel</scene> to one another. Helix A consists of residues 6-23; Helix B consists of residues 49-65; Helix C consists of residues 77-91; Helix D consists of residues 112-131; and Helix E consists of residues 135-155.<ref name="Structure Ifn B">PMID:20616576</ref><ref name="UniProt">http://www.uniprot.org/uniprot/P00784</ref>