Gastricsin also known as pepsinogen C is an enzyme that in humans is encoded by the PGCgene.[5][6][7][8]
Function
Gastricsin is an aspartic proteinase that belongs to the peptidase family A1. The encoded protein is a digestive enzyme that is produced in the stomach and constitutes a major component of the gastric mucosa. This protein is also secreted into the serum. This protein is synthesized as an inactive zymogen that includes a highly basic prosegment. This enzyme is converted into its active mature form at low pH by sequential cleavage of the prosegment that is carried out by the enzyme itself.[8]
Clinical significance
Polymorphisms in this gene are associated with susceptibility to gastric cancers. Serum levels of this enzyme are used as a biomarker for certain gastric diseases including Helicobacter pylori related gastritis.[8]
^"Human PubMed Reference:". National Center for Biotechnology Information, U.S. National Library of Medicine.
^"Mouse PubMed Reference:". National Center for Biotechnology Information, U.S. National Library of Medicine.
^Hayano T, Sogawa K, Ichihara Y, Fujii-Kuriyama Y, Takahashi K (January 1988). "Primary structure of human pepsinogen C gene". J. Biol. Chem. 263 (3): 1382–5. PMID3335549.
^Pals G, Azuma T, Mohandas TK, Bell GI, Bacon J, Samloff IM, Walz DA, Barr PJ, Taggart RT (February 1989). "Human pepsinogen C (progastricsin) polymorphism: evidence for a single locus located at 6p21.1-pter". Genomics. 4 (2): 137–48. doi:10.1016/0888-7543(89)90292-9. PMID2567697.
^Taggart RT, Cass LG, Mohandas TK, Derby P, Barr PJ, Pals G, Bell GI (January 1989). "Human pepsinogen C (progastricsin). Isolation of cDNA clones, localization to chromosome 6, and sequence homology with pepsinogen A". J. Biol. Chem. 264 (1): 375–9. PMID2909526.
