Essential Light Chain (ELC)

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alignment
Essential light chain (ELC) has two alternate mRNA splice forms. A1 (long) has ~55 residues before the first EF-hand; A2 (short) has about ten. The ancestor to vertebrates had four isoforms of ELC. The skeletal form is most divergent, then the smooth muscle form. The cardiac atrial and cardiac ventricular forms are most similar. Molluscan ELC is inferred to bind calcium in its first EF-hand; vertebrate ELC's do not bind calcium [9].