Saez Maria E, Ramirez-Lorca Reposo, Moron Francisco J, Ruiz Agustin
Department of Structural Genomics, Neocodex, Centro de Negocios Charles Darwin s/n, Isla de la Cartuja, 41092-Sevilla, Spain.
Drug Discov Today. 2006 Oct;11(19-20):917-23. doi: 10.1016/j.drudis.2006.08.009. Epub 2006 Sep 7.
The calpain family is a group of cysteine proteases unique in their dependency on calcium to attain functionally active forms. Calpains are involved in a wide range of cellular calcium-regulated functions, including signal transduction, cell proliferation and differentiation, and apoptosis. Moreover, altered calpain activity has been observed in several human diseases. Specific calpain inhibitors hold promise for the treatment of neuromuscular and neurodegenerative diseases in which calpains have been shown to be upregulated (e.g. Parkinson's disease and Duchenne muscular dystrophy). Conversely, calpain activators could be a useful approach for those diseases where reduced calpain activity has been observed, such as type 2 diabetes or metabolic syndrome.
钙蛋白酶家族是一组半胱氨酸蛋白酶，其独特之处在于依赖钙来获得功能活性形式。钙蛋白酶参与广泛的细胞钙调节功能，包括信号转导、细胞增殖与分化以及细胞凋亡。此外，在几种人类疾病中已观察到钙蛋白酶活性改变。特定的钙蛋白酶抑制剂有望用于治疗已证明钙蛋白酶上调的神经肌肉和神经退行性疾病（如帕金森病和杜氏肌营养不良症）。相反，对于那些已观察到钙蛋白酶活性降低的疾病，如2型糖尿病或代谢综合征，钙蛋白酶激活剂可能是一种有用的方法。
