Macroglobulin

Other macroglobulins include α2-macroglobulin, which is elevated in nephrotic syndrome, diabetes, severe burns, and other conditions, while a deficiency is associated with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.

The macroglobulin tetramers can be irreversibly dissociated into dimers by metalscontraions as well as chaotropic substances like urea and guanidine hydrochloride.

Alpha-2 macroglobulin is also the largest non-immunoglobulin molecule found among the several highly abundant proteins in peripheral blood circulation.

In the plasma and tissues of vertebrates, alpha 2-macroglobulin and similar proteins act as humoral defensive barriers against pathogens by binding onto host or foreign peptides and particles.

The fact that alpha-2 macroglobulin interacts with and engulfs nearly any proteinase it comes across, whether it is native or foreign, suggests that it has a been designated a special role as a "panproteinase inhibitor."

De novo binding sites are then created by the activation of alpha-2 macroglobulin and are used to facilitate and organize the establishment of complexes with cytokines and other peptides.

The direct physical interrelation of cytokines with activated alpha-2 macroglobulin in cell cultures suggested that it has a function as a biological response modulator.

Presently, members of the macroglobulin family have been identified in crustaceans, molluscs, fish, amphibians, reptiles, ticks, insects, birds, and mammals.

The blood of some species show that multiple members of the macroglobulin family have different molecular weights and partially redundant functions.

[5] Waldenström macroglobulinemia is a slow-silent disease that typically develops when a person is around 65 or older, is male, has a family history of lymphoma, and is caucasian.