... man [8,9]. In the verteb-rate lens, the b and c crystallins together account for the majority of the soluble proteins (the other majorfamily being the a-crystallins, members of the smallheat-shock ... abundant,structural components of the lens, giving the tissue its refractive properties. The lower level of expression of cN and its thermodynamic properties suggest that it isnot well adapted for the high concentration ... essen-tially an outlier from both b and c families.Overall, these data show a broader and more com-plex view of the evolution of the bc superfamily in the vertebrate eye and the adaptive ‘choices’ made...