Serum amyloid P component conserved in all vertebrates and also found in distant invertebrates such as the horseshoe crab (Limulus polyphemus). Serum amyloid P component The serum amyloid P component (SAP) is the identical serum form of amyloid P component (AP), a 25kDa pentameric protein first identified as the pentagonal constituent of in vivo pathological deposits called "amyloid". APCS is its human gene. AP makes up 14% of the dry mass of amyloid deposits and is thought to be an important contributor to the pathogenesis of a related group of diseases called the Amyloidoses. These conditions are characterised by the ordered aggregation of normal
Angiocrine growth factors Angiocrine growth factors Angiocrine growth factors are molecules found in blood vessels' endothelial cells that can stimulate organ-specific repair activities in damaged or diseased organs. Endothelial cells possess tissue-specific genes that code for unique growth factors, adhesion molecules and factors regulating metabolism. The discovery emerged after the entirety of active genes in endothelial cells was decoded, resulting in an atlas of organ-specific blood vessel cells. The atlas documented hundreds of already-known genes that had never been associated with these cells. Organs dictate the structure and function of their own blood vessels, including the repair molecules they secrete. Each organ produces