LALBA

Description

The LALBA (lactalbumin alpha) is a protein-coding gene located on chromosome 12.

α-Lactalbumin, also known as LALBA, is a protein encoded by the LALBA gene in humans. It plays a crucial role in regulating lactose production in milk across most mammalian species. In primates, α-lactalbumin expression is increased by the hormone prolactin, leading to enhanced lactose synthesis. α-Lactalbumin forms a complex with β-1,4-galactosyltransferase (beta4Gal-T1), known as lactose synthase (LS), where α-lactalbumin acts as the regulatory subunit and beta4Gal-T1 serves as the catalytic component. This complex enables LS to produce lactose by transferring galactose moieties to glucose. α-Lactalbumin exhibits strong calcium and zinc binding properties and may possess antibacterial or anticancer activity. A folding variant of α-lactalbumin, termed HAMLET, forms in acidic environments like the stomach and potentially induces apoptosis in tumor and immature cells. The folding dynamics of α-lactalbumin are quite unusual. In combination with Gal-T1, α-lactalbumin increases the enzyme's affinity for glucose by about 1000-fold and inhibits the formation of multiple galactose units. This facilitates lactose synthesis by converting Gal-TI into Lactose synthase.

LALBA is also known as HAMLET, LYZG.

Associated Diseases

WES Whole Exome Sequencing