Gene regulation and extracellular functions of procathepsin L.
Cathepsin L, a lysosomal cysteine proteinase, belongs to the papain family. This proteinase is different from the other members of the mammalian papain family cysteine proteinase in the following ways: (i) The cathepsin L gene is activated by a variety of growth factors and activated oncogenes. (ii) Procathepsin L, a precursor form of cathepsin L is secreted from various cells. (iii) The mRNA level of cathepsin L is related to the in vivo metastatic potential of the transformed cells. Thus, the regulation of the cathepsin L gene and the extracellular functions of secreted procathepsin L are tightly coupled. In this review, we describe these two points, which have recently been addressed in our laboratory.
Ishidoh
K
K
Department of Biochemistry, Juntendo University School of Medicine, Tokyo, Japan.
Kominami
E
E
D000818:Animals; D056668:Cathepsin L; D002403:Cathepsins / Q000235:genetics* / Q000502:physiology; D004792:Enzyme Precursors / Q000235:genetics* / Q000502:physiology; D005109:Extracellular Matrix / Q000378:metabolism; D005786:Gene Expression Regulation; D006801:Humans
D004792:Enzyme Precursors; D002403:Cathepsins; C063905:procathepsin L; D056668:Cathepsin L