elastin
Sign in to savethumb|200x200px|Thick elastic fibers consisting of bundles of elastin in the human lung Elastin is a protein encoded by the ELN gene in humans and several other animals. Elastin is a key component in the extracellular matrix of gnathostomes (jawed vertebrates). It is highly elastic and present in connective tissue of the body to resume its shape after stretching or contracting. Elastin helps skin return to its original position whence poked or pinched. Elastin is also in important load-bearing tissue of vertebrates and used in places where storage of mechanical energy is required.
Article
17 sectionsContents
- Function
- Mechanism of elastic recoil
- Clinical significance
- Elastosis
- Composition
- Tissue distribution
- Characteristics
- Clinical research
- Biosynthesis
- Tropoelastin precursors
- Aggregation
- Crosslinking
- Molecular biology
- See also
- References
- Further reading
- External links
thumb|200x200px|Thick elastic fibers consisting of bundles of elastin in the human lung Elastin is a protein encoded by the ELN gene in humans and several other animals. Elastin is a key component in the extracellular matrix of gnathostomes (jawed vertebrates). It is highly elastic and present in connective tissue of the body to resume its shape after stretching or contracting. Elastin helps skin return to its original position whence poked or pinched. Elastin is also in important load-bearing tissue of vertebrates and used in places where storage of mechanical energy is required.
== Function ==