title: Cathepsin Q, a novel lysosomal cysteine protease highly expressed in placenta.
abstract: The complete nucleotide sequence of a novel cathepsin cDNA derived from rat placenta was determined and is termed cathepsin Q. The predicted protein of 343 amino acid is a member of the family C1A protease related to cathepsin L. Rat cathepsin Q and its mouse counterpart were found highly expressed in placenta, whereas no detectable levels were found in lung, spleen, heart, brain, kidney, thymus, testicle, liver, or embryonic tissues. It is predicted that cathepsin Q will differ in catalytic specificity to another placental-specific protease, cathepsin P, indicating that these enzymes will have unique proteolytic functions in extra-embryonic tissues.
authors.affiliation: Laboratory of Enzymology, Alfred I. duPont Hospital for Children, Wilmington, Delaware, 19899, USA.
authors.forename: K
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Sol-Church
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Frenck
authors.forename: R W
authors.initials: RW
authors.lastname: Mason
mesh_terms: D000595:Amino Acid Sequence; D000818:Animals; D001483:Base Sequence; D056657:Cathepsin K; D002403:Cathepsins / Q000737:chemistry / Q000235:genetics* / Q000378:metabolism*; D017124:Conserved Sequence; D003546:Cysteine Endopeptidases / Q000737:chemistry / Q000235:genetics* / Q000378:metabolism*; D008297:Male; D051379:Mice; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D009928:Organ Specificity; D010920:Placenta / Q000201:enzymology*; D012333:RNA, Messenger / Q000235:genetics; D051381:Rats; D016415:Sequence Alignment; D017386:Sequence Homology, Amino Acid
chemical_list: D012333:RNA, Messenger; D002403:Cathepsins; D003546:Cysteine Endopeptidases; C404746:cathepsin Q; D056657:Cathepsin K; C534132:Ctsk protein, mouse; C534133:Ctsk protein, rat