Serum Albumin: A Multifaced Enzyme

Abstract

Human serum albumin (HSA) is the most abundant protein in plasma, contributing actively to oncotic pressure maintenance and fluid distribution between body compartments. HSA acts as the main carrier of fatty acids, recognizes metal ions, affects pharmacokinetics of many drugs, provides the metabolic modification of some ligands, renders potential toxins harmless, accounts for most of the anti-oxidant capacity of human plasma, and displays esterase, enolase, glucuronidase, and peroxidase (pseudo)-enzymatic activities. HSA-based catalysis is physiologically relevant, affecting the metabolism of endogenous and exogenous compounds including proteins, lipids, cholesterol, reactive oxygen species (ROS), and drugs. Catalytic properties of HSA are modulated by allosteric effectors, competitive inhibitors, chemical modifications, pathological conditions, and aging. HSA displays anti-oxidant properties and is critical for plasma detoxification from toxic agents and for pro-drugs activation. The enzymatic properties of HSA can be also exploited by chemical industries as a scaffold to produce libraries of catalysts with improved proficiency and stereoselectivity for water decontamination from poisonous agents and environmental contaminants, in the so called “green chemistry” field. Here, an overview of the intrinsic and metal dependent (pseudo-)enzymatic properties of HSA is reported to highlight the roles played by this multifaced protein.

A Nomogram Predicting the Overall Survival and Cancer-Specific Survival in Patients with Parathyroid Cancer: A Retrospective Study

“…ALB is closely associated with inflammatory and dystrophic status in cancer patients. ALB is mainly synthesized by the liver and is the most and smallest molecular in plasma ( 42 ). They also activate DNA replication in cancer cells, thereby promoting tumor proliferation and immune escape ( 43 , 44 ).…”

Spectroscopy, Structure, Biomacromolecular Interactions, and Antiproliferation Activity of a Fe(II) Complex With DPA-Bpy as Pentadentate Ligand

“…Human serum albumin (HSA) is the most abundant protein in plasma and is the main carrier of endogenous and exogenous ligands, including fatty acids (FAs), nucleic acids, hormones, metals, toxins, and drugs. Thus, HSA plays a relevant role as a drug carrier by influencing their pharmacokinetics and pharmacodynamics ( Ishima et al, 2012 ; Belinskaia et al, 2021 ; De Simone et al, 2021 ). Furthermore, the fluorescence spectroscopy and MALDI-TOF MS spectra were used to study the binding mode and interaction between the synthesized complex and HSA.…”

Serum Albumin for Magnetic Nanoparticles Coating

“…Indeed, HSA represents the carrier for fatty acids, heme, nucleic acids, cholesterol, nitric oxide, bile pigments, hormones, and metals ions (ex. calcium (II), zinc (II), nickel (II)), and renders potential toxins harmless [44,50,51]. As one of the most abundant plasma proteins, not a single drug in the blood will pass without its «strength test».…”

“…It influences the stability, pharmacokinetics, biodistribution of drug-delivery systems by binding or forming its protein corona on the surface. Albumin has various (pseudo-)enzymatic properties such as esterase, RNA-hydrolyzing, enolase, lipid peroxidase, etc., activities [44,50,51]. These weak activities are essential considering the large amount of HSA in the body [43,52].…”

“…Sudlow's sites are capable of attaching with a wide range of drugs [63]. Therefore, they are well recognized and thoroughly investigated [43,44,50,54,63]. For example, the crystal structures of HSA with bilirubin, fatty acids, heme, thyroxine, and various drugs diazepam, ibuprofen, warfarin, aspirin, phenylbutazone are known [63].…”