Alpha-B-crystallin in neuropathology.

alphaB-Crystallin, which has homology with the small heat shock proteins, is the basic subunit of alpha-crystallin, a major component of the vertebrate eye lens. These crystallins have for a long time been thought to be absolutely lens specific. However, about a decade ago alphaB-crystallin has been detected extralenticularly in many tissues among which the central nervous system. Under pathological conditions the expression level of alphaB-crystallin frequently increases. For this reason it is considered to be a useful marker in a variety of neurodegenerative diseases. In this mini-review, a number of typical neurodegenerative disorders is dealt with in which alphaB-crystallin may play a role.