Beta-expansins

Patent Granted So far, two large families of expansin genes have been discovered in plants, named alpha-expansins (given the gene symbol EXPA) and beta-expansins (EXPB). Both families of expansins have been identified in a wide range of land plants, from angiosperms and gymnosperms to ferns and mosses. The model plant Arabidopsis thaliana contains around 26 different α-expansin genes and 6 β-expansin genes. A subset of β-expansins has evolved a special role in grass pollen, where they are known as group 1 grass pollen allergens.[7] Plants also have a small set of expansin-like genes (named EXLA and EXLB) whose function has not been established.[8] Some proteins in bacteria and fungi are known to have distant sequence similarity to plant expansins.