Disease relevance of OPN5

• The human KLK8 (neuropsin/ovasin) gene: identification of two novel splice variants and its prognostic value in ovarian cancer [1].
• After both stages, only one SNP was significantly associated with an increased risk of breast cancer - the PGR-12 (rs1042638) V660L valine to leucine polymorphism [VL heterozygotes (odds ratio, 1.13; 95% confidence interval, 1.03-1.24) and the LL homozygotes (odds ratio, 1.30; 95% confidence interval, 0.98-1.73), P(het) = 0.008, P(trend) = 0.002] [2].

High impact information on OPN5

• Human kallikrein 8 (hK8; neuropsin) is a serine protease and new member of the hK family [3].
• All splice junctions follow the GT/AG rule, and the intron phases are identical to those of many other genes belonging to the same family, i.e., the kallikreins, NES1, and neuropsin [4].
• Here we have cloned a cDNA and analyzed the gene for human neuropsin by polymerase chain reaction-based strategies [5].
• The gene for human neuropsin had six exons and five introns, and the gene organization is similar to trypsin-type serine proteases [5].
• The amino acid sequences of the two types of human neuropsin were identical, except that type 2 carried an insert of 45 amino acids at the C-terminus of the leader sequence [6].

Biological context of OPN5

• A novel form of human neuropsin, a brain-related serine protease, is generated by alternative splicing and is expressed preferentially in human adult brain [6].
• The KLK8 gene product, neuropsin, processes extracellular matrix and is important for neuronal plasticity [7].

Anatomical context of OPN5

• Neuropsin is a serine protease expressed in the limbic system of the brain [8].

Other interactions of OPN5

• KLK8 (neuropsin) is highly expressed in brain tissues and may play a role in brain development, plasticity and response to stress [9].
• It has been shown that three serine proteases, thrombin, plasminogen activators and neuropsin, have functional roles in neural plasticity [8].
• On the other hand, neuropsin may act as a regulatory molecule in LTP via its proteolytic degradation of extracellular matrix protein such as fibronectin [10].
• Kindling induced neuropsin mRNA and protein expression and anti-neuropsin antibody ameliorates kindling epilepsy [8].

Analytical, diagnostic and therapeutic context of OPN5

• Sequence analysis and expression of human neuropsin cDNA and gene [5].

References