1985年,美国加州大学科学家Robert Lehrer首次命名防御素。防御素是富含精氨酸的阳离子多肽,一般由18~54个氨基酸组成,以富含β片状折叠和6个由二硫键连接的半胱氨酸为特征,属于抗微生物肽的一类,存在于脊椎动物、无脊椎动物及植物体内。人类编码防御素的基因至少有8个位于第8号染色体的短臂上,由它们翻译成无活性的前体蛋白以保持其生物活性[1]。根 In 1985, Robert Lehrer, a University of California scientist, first named defensins. Defensins are arginine-rich cationic polypeptides, typically consisting of 18 to 54 amino acids, characterized by an abundance of beta sheet-like folds and six disulfide-linked cysteines, belonging to one of the antimicrobial peptides Classes, present in vertebrates, invertebrates and plants. At least eight genes encoding human defensins are located on the short arm of chromosome 8 and are translated into inactive precursor proteins to preserve their biological activity [1]. root