Perez-Piñera P, Suárez A, Castro P, Blázquez-Menes B, Menéndez-González M
Human Kalikrein 6 (hk6) is a serín proteasa mainly expressed in the brain. In patients with Alzheimer's Disease the amount of hK6 in cefhalospinal fluid is 3 folds higher than in controls (though other authors affirm that are lower) whereas in blood the concentration seems to be 10 folds higher than in controls. hK6 it is located in senile plaques and in neurofibrilar tangles in the brain of patients with Alzheimer's Disease. The pathogenic mechanism hK6 can be involved in the disease is not clear, though in certain way it seems to have amiloidogenic properties. Fibrillization of Aß may affect the clearance of Aß by inhibiting the brain proteases, thereby increasing the concentration of circulating Aß, that may further increase the Aß fibrillization. Another hypothesis is that hk6 acts regulating the balance of the different secretases that process the beta amyloid protein precursor, undoing the physiological balance in favor of the beta secretase (BACE) that generates amiloide 1- 42 that cannot be eliminated unleasching this way the amyloid cascade. More and wider studies are necessary to demonstrate the usefulness of this protein as biomarcador of AD. Finally it is described the procedure that our group follows for the cloning and purification of hk6.
