A protein found in the lens of the eye and in other organisms that helps maintain lens transparency and refractive properties.
From crystalline (adjective) + -in (chemical suffix for proteins). Named for its role in keeping the eye lens crystal-clear, this term entered biochemistry in the 1800s when scientists studied lens proteins.
Your eye lenses contain crystallin proteins that are so perfectly arranged they're almost as clear as actual glass—but unlike glass, your crystallins keep repairing themselves throughout your life!
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