Review

Nature Reviews Cancer 4, 876-890 (November 2004) | doi:10.1038/nrc1474

The emerging roles of human tissue kallikreins in cancer

Carla A. Borgoño1 & Eleftherios P. Diamandis1  About the authors

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Human tissue kallikreins (hKs), which are encoded by the largest contiguous cluster of protease genes in the human genome, are secreted serine proteases with diverse expression patterns and physiological roles. Although primarily known for their clinical applicability as cancer biomarkers, recent evidence implicates hKs in many cancer-related processes, including cell-growth regulation, angiogenesis, invasion and metastasis. They have been shown to promote or inhibit neoplastic progression, acting individually and/or in cascades with other hKs and proteases, and might represent attractive targets for therapeutic intervention.

Author affiliations

  1. Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, Mount Sinai Hospital, Toronto, Ontario, M5G1X5, Canada.

Correspondence to: Eleftherios P. Diamandis1 Email: ediamandis@mtsinai.on.ca

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