Description |
Thionins are small, basic plant proteins, 45 to 50 amino acids in length, which include three or four conserved disulphide linkages. The proteins are toxic to animal cells, presumably attacking the cell membrane and rendering it permeable: this results in the inhibition of sugar uptake and allows potassium and phosphate ions, proteins, and nucleotides to leak from cells [PMID: 3985614]. Thionins are mainly found in seeds where they may act as a defence against consumption by animals. A barley (Hordeum vulgare) leaf thionin that is highly toxic to plant pathogens and is involved in the mechanism of plant defence against microbial infections has also been identified [PMID: 1377959]. The hydrophobic protein crambin from the Abyssinian kale (Crambe abyssinica) is also a member of the thionin family [PMID: 3985614]. |
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Note:
The format for Signature ID is the family name, followed by H or P for HMM or Pattern respectively. The integer suffixed to H or P denotes the length of the sequences used to create the family signature. If no integer is suffixed, it indicates that the signature was created using all the sequences of the family. The integer following the underscore denotes the number of sequences used for the creation of signatures.
For example:
AureinH_21 is a HMM for Aurein family created using 21 sequences.
AureinP16_9 is a pattern for Aurein family derived using 9 input sequences that are 16 residues long. |
