| PubMed | eMedicine | OMIM | Google | Google images | Yahoo images | YouTube |

  • Printer friendly version

PLA2s

PLA2

The phospholipases A2 (PLA2s), hydrolyze the sn-2 fatty acid acyl ester bond of phosphoglycerides, releasing free fatty acids and lysophospholipids.

The PLA2s constitute a diverse family of enzymes with respect to sequence, function, localization, and divalent cation requirements. They play an important role in a variety of cellular processes, including the digestion and metabolism of phospholipids as well as the production of precursors for inflammatory reactions.

The PLA2s have been classified into at least 5 groups based on their size, structure, and need for divalent cations.

Groups I, II, and III all contain so-called secreted forms of PLA2, which are extracellular enzymes that have a low molecular mass and require calcium ions for catalysis, while groups IV and V contain cytosolic forms of PLA2 that have a high molecular mass and require calcium iron only in the case of group IV PLA2.

See also

- phospholipases