BIOSS
Centre for Biological Signalling Studies

Specialized roles for cysteine cathepsins in health and disease

01.10.2010

Reiser J, Adair B, Reinheckel T.

J Clin Invest 120(10):3421-31

J Clin Invest       online article

Cathepsins were originally identified as proteases that act in the lysosome. Recent work has uncovered nontraditional roles for cathepsins in the extracellular space as well as in the cytosol and nucleus. There is strong evidence that subspecialized and compartmentalized cathepsins participate in many physiologic and pathophysiologic cellular processes, in which they can act as both digestive and regulatory proteases.