VCAM-1

Vascular cell adhesion molecule 1
250px
PDB rendering based on 1ij9.
Available structures: 1ij9, 1vca, 1vsc
Identifiers
Symbol(s)	VCAM1; CD106; DKFZp779G2333; INCAM-100; MGC99561
External IDs	OMIM: 192225 MGI: 98926 Homologene: 838
Gene ontology Molecular Function: • protein binding Cellular Component: • plasma membrane • integral to membrane Biological Process: • cell-cell adhesion
RNA expression pattern
250px More reference expression data
Orthologs
	Human	Mouse
Entrez	7412	22329
Ensembl	ENSG00000162692	ENSMUSG00000027962
Uniprot	P19320	Q3TR98
Refseq	NM_001078 (mRNA) NP_001069 (protein)	NM_011693 (mRNA) NP_035823 (protein)
Location	Chr 1: 100.96 - 100.98 Mb	Chr 3: 116.1 - 116.12 Mb
Pubmed search	[1]	[2]

Vascular cell adhesion molecule 1, also known as VCAM1, is a human gene.

This gene is a member of the Ig superfamily and encodes a cell surface sialoglycoprotein expressed by cytokine-activated endothelium. This type I membrane protein mediates leukocyte-endothelial cell adhesion and signal transduction, and may play a role in the development of artherosclerosis and rheumatoid arthritis. Two alternatively spliced transcripts encoding different isoforms have been described for this gene.

VCAM-1 (vascular cell adhesion molecule-1), also known as CD106, is a molecule with a considerable role in the human immune system.

Structure

VCAM-1 contains six or seven immunoglobulin domains, and is expressed on both large and small vessels only after the endothelial cells are stimulated by cytokines.

Function

VCAM-1 promotes the adhesion of lymphocytes, monocytes, eosinophils, and basophils. Interestingly, certain melanoma cells can use VCAM-1 to adhere to the endothelium, and VCAM-1 may participate in monocyte recruitment to atherosclerotic sites. As a result, VCAM-1 is a potential drug target.

Upregulation of VCAM-1 in endothelial cells by cytokines occurs as a result of increased gene transcription (e.g., in response to Tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-α) and Interleukin-1, aka IL-1) and through stabilization of Messenger RNA (mNRA) (e.g., Interleukin-4, aka IL-4). The promoter region of the VCAM-1 gene contains functional tandem NF-kB (nuclear factor-kappa B) sites.

The sustained expression of VCAM-1 lasts over 24 hours. Primarily, VCAM-1 is an endothelial ligand for VLA-4 (Very Late Antigen-1 or α4β1) of the β1 subfamily of integrins, and for integrin α4β7. VCAM-1 expression has also been observed in other cell types (e.g., smooth muscle cells).

Further reading

• Yonekawa K, Harlan JM (2005). "Targeting leukocyte integrins in human diseases.". J. Leukoc. Biol. 77 (2): 129-40. doi:10.1189/jlb.0804460. PMID 15548573.
• Wu TC (2007). "The role of vascular cell adhesion molecule-1 in tumor immune evasion.". Cancer Res. 67 (13): 6003-6. doi:10.1158/0008-5472.CAN-07-1543. PMID 17616653.

External links

• MeSH VCAM-1