Integrin, alpha L, also known as ITGAL, is a human gene

Gene

A gene is a molecular unit of heredity of a living organism. It is a name given to some stretches of DNA and RNA that code for a type of protein or for an RNA chain that has a function in the organism. Living beings depend on genes, as they specify all proteins and functional RNA chains...

 which functions in the immune system. It is involved in cellular adhesion and costimulatory signaling. It is the target of the drug efalizumab

Efalizumab

Efalizumab is a formerly available medication designed to treat autoimmune diseases, origianally marketed to treat psoriasis. As implied by the suffix -zumab, it is a recombinant humanized monoclonal antibody administered once weekly by subcutaneous injection...

.
CD11a is one of the two components, along with CD18

CD18

Integrin beta-2 is a protein that in humans is encoded by the ITGB2 gene.It is the beta subunit of four different structures:* LFA-1 * Macrophage-1 antigen * Integrin alphaXbeta2...

, which form lymphocyte function-associated antigen-1.

Efalizumab

Efalizumab

Efalizumab is a formerly available medication designed to treat autoimmune diseases, origianally marketed to treat psoriasis. As implied by the suffix -zumab, it is a recombinant humanized monoclonal antibody administered once weekly by subcutaneous injection...

 acts as an immunosuppressant

Immunosuppressant

An immunosuppressant is any substance that performs immunosuppression of the immune system. They may be either exogenous, as immunosuppressive drugs, or endogenous, as ,e. g., testosterone...

 by binding to CD11a.

See also

• CD11c
  CD11c
  CD11c, also known as Integrin, alpha X , is a human gene.CD11c is a type I transmembrane protein found at high levels on most human dendritic cells, but also on monocytes, macrophages, neutrophils, and some B cells that induces cellular activation and helps trigger neutrophil respiratory burst;...
  
  
• integrin
  Integrin
  Integrins are receptors that mediate attachment between a cell and the tissues surrounding it, which may be other cells or the ECM. They also play a role in cell signaling and thereby regulate cellular shape, motility, and the cell cycle....
  
  
• leukocyte adhesion deficiency
  Leukocyte adhesion deficiency
  Leukocyte adhesion deficiency , is a rare autosomal recessive disorder characterized by immunodeficiency resulting in recurrent infections. Leukocyte adhesion deficiency is divided into at least two subtypes: LAD1 and LAD2.-Characteristics:...
  
  
• Cluster of differentiation
  Cluster of differentiation
  The cluster of differentiation is a protocol used for the identification and investigation of cell surface molecules present on white blood cells, providing targets for immunophenotyping of cells...
  
  

Further reading

External links

• ITGAL Info with links in the Cell Migration Gateway