Function

Cryptochrome (Cry) is a flavoprotein associated with the biological clock function. In Drosophila melanogaster it is also involved in blue-light photoreception[1].

  • Cryptochrome-1 is a circadian clock repressor[2].
  • Cryptochrome-2 is a blue light receptor involved in flowering induction[3].
  • Cryptochrome-4 is magnetically sensitive and thus is involved in night migration of birds[4]. For details see Cryptochrome 4.

See also JMS/cryptochrome and Period circadian protein.

Disease

The absence of Cry resulting in the lack of functional clock system leads to elevated proinflammatory cytokine activation and thus to increase incidence of chronic diseases such as diabetes, obesity and also cancer[5].

3D Structures of cryptochrome

Cryptochrome 3D structures


Mouse cryptochrome-1 complex with FAD (PDB code 4i6g)

Drag the structure with the mouse to rotate

ReferencesReferences

  1. Yoshii T, Todo T, Wulbeck C, Stanewsky R, Helfrich-Forster C. Cryptochrome is present in the compound eyes and a subset of Drosophila's clock neurons. J Comp Neurol. 2008 Jun 20;508(6):952-66. doi: 10.1002/cne.21702. PMID:18399544 doi:http://dx.doi.org/10.1002/cne.21702
  2. Xu H, Gustafson CL, Sammons PJ, Khan SK, Parsley NC, Ramanathan C, Lee HW, Liu AC, Partch CL. Cryptochrome 1 regulates the circadian clock through dynamic interactions with the BMAL1 C terminus. Nat Struct Mol Biol. 2015 Jun;22(6):476-484. PMID:25961797 doi:10.1038/nsmb.3018
  3. Guo H, Duong H, Ma N, Lin C. The Arabidopsis blue light receptor cryptochrome 2 is a nuclear protein regulated by a blue light-dependent post-transcriptional mechanism. Plant J. 1999 Aug;19(3):279-87. PMID:10476075 doi:10.1046/j.1365-313x.1999.00525.x
  4. Xu J, Jarocha LE, Zollitsch T, Konowalczyk M, Henbest KB, Richert S, Golesworthy MJ, Schmidt J, Déjean V, Sowood DJC, Bassetto M, Luo J, Walton JR, Fleming J, Wei Y, Pitcher TL, Moise G, Herrmann M, Yin H, Wu H, Bartölke R, Käsehagen SJ, Horst S, Dautaj G, Murton PDF, Gehrckens AS, Chelliah Y, Takahashi JS, Koch KW, Weber S, Solov'yov IA, Xie C, Mackenzie SR, Timmel CR, Mouritsen H, Hore PJ. Magnetic sensitivity of cryptochrome 4 from a migratory songbird. Nature. 2021 Jun;594(7864):535-540. PMID:34163056 doi:10.1038/s41586-021-03618-9
  5. Narasimamurthy R, Hatori M, Nayak SK, Liu F, Panda S, Verma IM. Circadian clock protein cryptochrome regulates the expression of proinflammatory cytokines. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 2012 Jul 31;109(31):12662-7. doi:, 10.1073/pnas.1209965109. Epub 2012 Jul 9. PMID:22778400 doi:http://dx.doi.org/10.1073/pnas.1209965109

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