Ontology highlight
ABSTRACT:
SUBMITTER: Ra HJ
PROVIDER: S-EPMC2246078 | biostudies-literature | 2007 Oct
REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature
Ra Hyun-Jeong HJ Parks William C WC
Matrix biology : journal of the International Society for Matrix Biology 20070707 8
As their name implies, MMPs were first described as proteases that degrade extracellular matrix proteins, such as collagens, elastin, proteoglycans, and laminins. However, studies of MMP function in vivo have revealed that these proteinases act on a variety of extracellular protein substrates, often to activate latent forms of effector proteins, such as antimicrobial peptides and cytokines, or to alter protein function, such as shedding of cell-surface proteins. Because their substrates are dive ...[more]