Glossary
The state-of-the-art glossary for Waldenström’s macroglobulinemia.
Albumin
Albumin in the glossary for Waldenström's macroglobulinemia
A family of globular proteins, the most common being the serum albumins.
Albumin is the term used to describe a family of globular proteins, the most common being the serum albumins. Human serum albumin (HSA) is the most abundant protein in plasma. HSA displays an extraordinary ligand binding capacity for many endogenous and exogenous compounds. Indeed, HSA represents the main carrier for fatty acids, 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 (pseudo-)enzymatic properties.
HSA is a valuable biomarker of many diseases, including cancer, rheumatoid arthritis, ischemia, post-menopausal obesity, severe acute graft-versus host disease, and diseases that need monitoring of the glycemic control. 1
Glossary overview