Chemokine ligand 5 (also CCL5) is a protein

Protein

Proteins are biochemical compounds consisting of one or more polypeptides typically folded into a globular or fibrous form, facilitating a biological function. A polypeptide is a single linear polymer chain of amino acids bonded together by peptide bonds between the carboxyl and amino groups of...

 which in humans is encoded by the CCL5 gene

Gene

A gene is a molecular unit of heredity of a living organism. It is a name given to some stretches of DNA and RNA that code for a type of protein or for an RNA chain that has a function in the organism. Living beings depend on genes, as they specify all proteins and functional RNA chains...

. It is also known as RANTES (Regulated upon Activation, Normal T-cell Expressed, and Secreted).

Function

CCL5 is an 8kDa protein

Protein

Proteins are biochemical compounds consisting of one or more polypeptides typically folded into a globular or fibrous form, facilitating a biological function. A polypeptide is a single linear polymer chain of amino acids bonded together by peptide bonds between the carboxyl and amino groups of...

 classified as a chemotactic

Chemotaxis

Chemotaxis is the phenomenon in which somatic cells, bacteria, and other single-cell or multicellular organisms direct their movements according to certain chemicals in their environment. This is important for bacteria to find food by swimming towards the highest concentration of food molecules,...

 cytokine

Cytokine

Cytokines are small cell-signaling protein molecules that are secreted by the glial cells of the nervous system and by numerous cells of the immune system and are a category of signaling molecules used extensively in intercellular communication...

 or chemokine

Chemokine

Chemokines are a family of small cytokines, or proteins secreted by cells. Their name is derived from their ability to induce directed chemotaxis in nearby responsive cells; they are chemotactic cytokines...

. CCL5 is chemotactic for T cells, eosinophils, and basophils, and plays an active role in recruiting leukocytes into inflammatory sites. With the help of particular cytokine

Cytokine

Cytokines are small cell-signaling protein molecules that are secreted by the glial cells of the nervous system and by numerous cells of the immune system and are a category of signaling molecules used extensively in intercellular communication...

s (i.e., IL-2 and IFN-γ) that are released by T cell

T cell

T cells or T lymphocytes belong to a group of white blood cells known as lymphocytes, and play a central role in cell-mediated immunity. They can be distinguished from other lymphocytes, such as B cells and natural killer cells , by the presence of a T cell receptor on the cell surface. They are...

s, CCL5 also induces the proliferation and activation of certain natural-killer (NK) cells to form CHAK (CC-Chemokine-activated killer) cells. It is also an HIV

HIV

Human immunodeficiency virus is a lentivirus that causes acquired immunodeficiency syndrome , a condition in humans in which progressive failure of the immune system allows life-threatening opportunistic infections and cancers to thrive...

-suppressive factor released from CD8+ T cell

Cytotoxic T cell

A cytotoxic T cell belongs to a sub-group of T lymphocytes that are capable of inducing the death of infected somatic or tumor cells; they kill cells that are infected with viruses , or are otherwise damaged or...

s. This chemokine has been localized to chromosome 17 in humans.

RANTES was first identified in a search for genes expressed "late" (3–5 days) after T cell

T cell

T cells or T lymphocytes belong to a group of white blood cells known as lymphocytes, and play a central role in cell-mediated immunity. They can be distinguished from other lymphocytes, such as B cells and natural killer cells , by the presence of a T cell receptor on the cell surface. They are...

 activation. It was subsequently determined to be a CC chemokine and expressed in more than 100 human diseases. RANTES expression is regulated in T lymphocytes by Kruppel like factor 13 (KLF13

KLF13

Kruppel-like factor 13, also known as KLF13, is a protein that in humans is encoded by the KLF13 gene.- Function :KLF13 belongs to a family of transcription factors that contain 3 classical zinc finger DNA-binding domains consisting of a zinc atom tetrahedrally coordinated by 2 cysteines and 2...

). RANTES, along with the related chemokines MIP-1alpha and MIP-1beta, has been identified as a natural HIV-suppressive factor secreted by activated CD8+ T cells and other immune cells. Recently, the RANTES protein has been engineered for in vivo production by Lactobacillus bacteria, and this solution is being developed into a possible HIV entry-inhibiting topical microbicide.

Interactions

CCL5 has been shown to interact

Protein-protein interaction

Protein–protein interactions occur when two or more proteins bind together, often to carry out their biological function. Many of the most important molecular processes in the cell such as DNA replication are carried out by large molecular machines that are built from a large number of protein...

 with CCR3

CCR3 (gene)

C-C chemokine receptor type 3 is a protein that in humans is encoded by the CCR3 gene.CCR3 has also recently been designated CD193 .-Interactions:CCR3 has been shown to interact with CCL5....

, CCR5

CCR5

C-C chemokine receptor type 5, also known as CCR5, is a protein that in humans is encoded by the CCR5 gene. CCR5 is a member of the beta chemokine receptors family of integral membrane proteins...

 and CCR1

CCR1

C-C chemokine receptor type 1 is a protein that in humans is encoded by the CCR1 gene.CCR1 has also recently been designated CD191 .-External links:...

.

CCL5 also activates the G-protein coupled receptor GPR75

GPR75

Probable G-protein coupled receptor 75 is a protein that in humans is encoded by the GPR75 gene.-Further reading:...

.

Further reading