Due to the fact that CRP is made up mostly of LIM domains, the structure and function of the LIM domain will have a huge impact on the role of CRP in cells. Other roles that LIM domains have been speculated to function in are cell growth control, binding to nucleic acids, and protein-protein interactions. In conclustion, cCRP interacts directly with zyxin, it's enriched in smooth muscle, its associated prominently with the actin cytoskeleton, and displays temporally regulated expression during embryogenesis. The LIM motif defines a specific zinc-binding protein domain. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States, 4404-4408.
Metal ions can stabilize tertiary conformations of proteins and induce changes in protein structure.
Then a binding surface for proteins or nucleic acids can be generated. Arrowhead encodes a LIM homeodomain protein that distinguishes subsets of Drosophila imaginal cells. Developmental Biology, 129-141. During embryogenesis, groups of cells are established into imaginal tissues. These cells are either excorporate or incorporate imaginal cells.