Thrombospondin-1: A Key Protein That Induces Fibrosis in Diabetic Complications

Figure 1

Schematic diagrams of the THBS1 gene and the thrombospondin-1 (TSP-1) protein. (a) Intron-exon organization of the THBS1 gene. The THBS1 gene consists of 16,393 bases including 22 exons. Exons 2-21 encode the 5729 b of mRNA. (b) Different transcription factors bind to the promoter of TSP-1 to induce its expression. USF1/2: upstream stimulatory factors 1/2; Sp1: stimulating protein; NF-κB: nuclear factor-kappa B; Egr1: early growth response 1; and AP1: activator protein 1. (c) Domain organization of TSP-1. NTD: N-terminal domain; O: oligomerization sequence; PC: procollagen homology region; types 1, 2, and 3: the three types of repeat units; CTD: C-terminal domain.

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