SFTPC : surfactant protein C
Description
The SFTPC (surfactant protein C) is a protein-coding gene located on chromosome 8.
The SFTPC gene provides instructions for making surfactant protein-C (SP-C), a crucial component of surfactant, a complex mixture of fats and proteins that lines the lung tissue. Surfactant is essential for easy breathing as it reduces surface tension, preventing the alveoli (tiny air sacs in the lungs) from collapsing after exhalation. SP-C, produced from the SFTPC gene, helps spread the surfactant across the lung tissue, enhancing its surface tension-lowering properties. The components of surfactant, including SP-C, are packaged in structures called lamellar bodies within specialized lung cells. SP-C undergoes several processing steps to mature and become functional, some of which take place within lamellar bodies.
SFTPC is also known as BRICD6, PSP-C, SFTP2, SMDP2, SP-C, SP5.
Associated Diseases
- Pulmonary fibrosis, idiopathic
- Infant acute respiratory distress syndrome
- Surfactant metabolism dysfunction, pulmonary, 2
- Idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis
- Surfactant dysfunction
