Gene/Protein Disease Symptom Drug Enzyme Compound
Pivot Concepts:   Target Concepts:
Query: EC:3.4.23.5 (cathepsin D)
 4,130 document(s) hit in 31,850,051 MEDLINE articles (0.00 seconds)

The cellular distribution of the lysosomal proteinase cathepsin D was studied in a series of 76 neoplasms and 18 non-neoplastic tissues from the human central nervous system, using a well-characterized polyclonal antibody in a peroxidase-antiperoxidase technique. In the normal and developing brain, cathepsin D is confined to neurons and choroid plexus epithelium. Strong granular cytoplasmic staining was present in neuronal and choroid plexus neoplasms, and in reactive macrophages. A large variety of other neoplasms also exhibited positive cytoplasmic staining, albeit usually of a weaker diffuse type. Cathepsin D cannot be considered a specific marker for neuronal or choroid plexus neoplasms, but the antiserum used in this study may be of value in antibody panels for the investigation of these tumours. Its localization may also be of value in embryological studies, particularly in the cerebellum, and in investigations of steroid hormone receptor-associated proteins in meningiomas and Schwannomas.
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PMID:Immunolocalization of cathepsin D in the human central nervous system and central nervous system neoplasms. 215 70

The immunohistochemical localization of cathepsin D (CD) was demonstrated for the first time in 54 schwannomas (32 intra- and 22 extracranial; 47 benign and 7 malignant) and 5 normal nerve fibers. Granular or vesicular CD-reactive structures were observed in all normal Schwann cells. All tumors contained CD-reactive tumor cells, although the population of CD-reactive tumor cells, the density, intracellular localization, and morphology of CD-reactive structures, and the intensity of CD immunoreactivity varied from case to case, portion to portion, and cell to cell, differing variously from those in normal Schwann cells. The variations were greater in malignant than in benign schwannomas. In mildly degenerate tumor cells, CD immunoreactivity was increased, possibly in response to the increased intracellular degenerate proteins, suggesting that the mechanism of induction of lysosomal proteases preserved in normal cells is not affected by the process of neoplastic transformation. In lesions of severe degeneration or necrosis, CD immunoreactivity was lost in most tumor cells but was strong in macrophages invading the lesions and perivascular regions. CD immunoreactivity was observed at various intensities in tumor cells in the Antoni type A area but not in most tumor cells in the Antoni type B area, suggesting that Antoni type B lesions show degenerative changes. The presence of CD-reactive tumor cells in all tumors examined and strong CD immunoreactivity observed at the invasion front of tumors in some cases of benign or malignant schwannoma suggests the possible role of CD in tumor invasion in some cases.
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PMID:Immunohistochemical localization of lysosomal cathepsin D in schwannomas. 1572 86