What is "lipocalin"

n. (context protein English) Any of a group of proteins that transport lipids and similar molecules

The lipocalins are a family of proteins which transport small hydrophobic molecules such as steroids, bilins, retinoids, and lipids. They share limited regions of sequence homology and a common tertiary structure architecture. This is an eight stranded antiparallel beta-barrel with a repeated + 1 topology enclosing an internal ligand binding site.

These proteins are found in gram negative bacteria, vertebrate cells, and invertebrate cells, and in plants. Lipocalins have been associated with many biological processes, among them immune response, pheromone transport, biological prostaglandin synthesis, retinoid binding, and cancer cell interactions.