Description
Product Characteristics: This gene encodes a secreted serine protease that converts plasminogen to plasmin. The encoded preproprotein is proteolytically processed to generate A and B polypeptide chains. These chains associate via a single disulfide bond to form the catalytically inactive high molecular weight urokinase-type plasminogen activator (HMW-uPA). HMW-uPA can be further processed into the catalytically active low molecular weight urokinase-type plasminogen activator (LMW-uPA). This low molecular weight form does not bind to the urokinase-type plasminogen activator receptor. Mutations in this gene may be associated with Quebec platelet disorder and late-onset Alzheimer's disease. Alternative splicing results in multiple transcript variants, at least one of which encodes an isoform that is proteolytically processed.,PLAU,ATF,BDPLT5,QPD,UPA,URK,u-PA,urokinase,Cancer,Signal Transduction,Kinase,Endocrine & Metabolism,Neuroscience,Neurodegenerative Diseases,Amyloid Plaque and Neurofibrillary Tangle Formation in Alzheimer's Disease,Cardiovascular,Blood,Hypoxia,PLAU
Target Information: This gene encodes a serine protease involved in degradation of the extracellular matrix and possibly tumor cell migration and proliferation. A specific polymorphism in this gene may be associated with late-onset Alzheimer's disease and also with decreased affinity for fibrin-binding. This protein converts plasminogen to plasmin by specific cleavage of an Arg-Val bond in plasminogen. Plasmin in turn cleaves this protein at a Lys-Ile bond to form a two-chain derivative in which a single disulfide bond connects the amino-terminal A-chain to the catalytically active, carboxy-terminal B-chain. This two-chain derivative is also called HMW-uPA (high molecular weight uPA). HMW-uPA can be further processed into LMW-uPA (low molecular weight uPA) by cleavage of chain A into a short chain A (A1) and an amino-terminal fragment. LMW-uPA is proteolytically active but does not bind to the uPA receptor. Alternatively spliced transcript variants encoding different isoforms have been found for this gene. [provided by RefSeq, Feb 2009]