(1) Laboratory of Neurogenetics, National Institute on Aging, 9000 Rockville Pike, Bethesda, MD 20892, USA
Abstract:
Background
Inferences about protein function are often made based on sequence homology to other gene products of known activities. This approach is valuable for small families of conserved proteins but can be difficult to apply to large superfamilies of proteins with diverse function. In this study we looked at sequence homology between members of the DJ-1/ThiJ/PfpI superfamily, which includes a human protein of unclear function, DJ-1, associated with inherited Parkinson's disease.