Surfactant Associated Protein A3 (SPA3)

SFTPH isis one of several genes encoding pulmonary-surfactant associated proteins (SFTPA) located on chromosome 10. Mutations in this gene and a highly similar gene located nearby, which affect the highly conserved carbohydrate recognition domain, are associated with idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis. The current version of the assembly displays only a single centromeric SFTPA gene pair rather than the two gene pairs shown in the previous assembly which were thought to have resulted from a duplication.

There are four main surfactant proteins, known as SP-A, B, C, and D. SP-A and D are hydrophilic, while SP-B and C are hydrophobic. Proteins are very sensitive to experimental conditions. Moreover, their effects tend to overlap. Thus, it is difficult to pinpoint the specific role of each protein.