Heat Shock Proteins – Temperature Dependence

In response to stresses, including heat, oxidants and toxins, all cells produce a common set of heat shock proteins (HSPs). There are four classes of high molar mass HSPs and one family of small HSPs (sHSPs). The sHSPs (12-43 kDa) tend to form large multimeric complexes. Size exclusion chromatography (SEC) has often been used to characterize these complexes.