alpha-lactalbumin; lactose synthase B protein; lysozyme-like protein 7 (LALBA LYZL7)

Function

• regulatory subunit of lactose synthase (LS)
• changes the substrate specificity of galactosyltransferase in the mammary gland making glucose a good acceptor substrate for this enzyme; this enables LS to synthesize lactose, the major carbohydrate component of milk
• in other tissues, galactosyltransferase transfers galactose onto the N-acetylglucosamine of the oligosaccharide chains in glycoproteins

Structure

belongs to the glycosyl hydrolase 22 family

Compartment

secreted

Expression

• mammary gland specific
• secreted in milk

More general terms

• Ca+2 binding protein
• glycoprotein
• protein subunit
• milk protein

Component of

• lactose synthase (LS)

Database

• Entrez gene: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/sites/entrez?db=gene&cmd=Retrieve&dopt=Graphics&list_uids=3906
• Kegg: http://www.genome.jp/dbget-bin/www_bget?hsa:3906
• OMIM: https://mirror.omim.org/entry/149750
• UniProt: http://www.uniprot.org/uniprot/P00709.html