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Meprins: Ancient Enzymes Newly Discovered in Cancer Progression

Handbook of Oxidative Stress in Cancer: Mechanistic Aspects

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Abstract

Meprins are glycosylated, multi-domain zinc endopeptidases belonging to the astacin family of metalloproteases. They have been found to have a diversified role in several physiological and pathological conditions including digestion, tissue remodeling, wound healing, neurodegenerative diseases, and cancer. The two isoforms, meprin α and β, are coded by separate genes on two different chromosomes. Expression of meprin α has been related with colorectal cancer and is used as a prognostic marker for the differentiation of chronic pancreatitis from malignant one. Meprin β is expressed in liver metastasis, neuroendocrine tumors, and endometrial cancer. The chapter aims at understanding the structure and function of theses proteases acting as molecular switches in tumor development, progression, and metastasis which can help in the designing of inhibitors acting as potential leads in future drug therapy.

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Acknowledgments

This work has been supported by a grant from the Department of Biotechnology, Govt. of India (BT/PR12326/BID/7/502/2014) to SSC and AC.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Microbiology, West Bengal State University, Barasat, West Bengal, India

    Sibani Sen Chakraborty, Ankur Chaudhuri & Yuthika Dholey

  2. Institute for Protein Design, University of Washington, Seattle, WA, USA

    Asim K. Bera

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  1. Sibani Sen Chakraborty
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  2. Ankur Chaudhuri
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  3. Yuthika Dholey
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  4. Asim K. Bera
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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Biochemistry and Biophysic, University of Kalyani Department of Biochemistry and Biophysic, Kalyani, West Bengal, India

    Sajal Chakraborti

  2. Dept of Veterinary Pathobiology, University of Missouri, College Vet, Columbia, MO, USA

    Bimal K Ray

  3. Saroj Gupta Cancer Centre & Research Ins, Kolkata, India

    Sushanta Roychowdhury

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Chakraborty, S.S., Chaudhuri, A., Dholey, Y., Bera, A.K. (2021). Meprins: Ancient Enzymes Newly Discovered in Cancer Progression. In: Chakraborti, S., Ray, B.K., Roychowdhury, S. (eds) Handbook of Oxidative Stress in Cancer: Mechanistic Aspects. Springer, Singapore. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-15-4501-6_145-1

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-15-4501-6_145-1

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  • Print ISBN: 978-981-15-4501-6

  • Online ISBN: 978-981-15-4501-6

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Chapter history

  1. Latest

    Meprins: Ancient Enzymes Newly Discovered in Cancer Progression
    Published:
    07 January 2022

    DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-15-4501-6_145-2

  2. Original

    Meprins: Ancient Enzymes Newly Discovered in Cancer Progression
    Published:
    28 October 2021

    DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-15-4501-6_145-1

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