antibody

By Christina Towers, PhD

Matrix metalloproteinases (MMP) are a family of endopeptidases involved in the breakdown of extracellular matrix (ECM) during both normal physiological and disease processes. MMP-2 is a zinc-dependent family member that selectively cleaves collagen and elastin, major structural components of the basement membrane. In addition, MMP-2 has been found to affect a number of non-matrix proteins such as big endothelin-1 (Fernandez-Patron et al., 1999), KISS (Takino et al., 2003), GSK3B (Kandasamy et al., 2009), and CHUK (Olivotto et al., 2013).

Tyrosine hydroxylase is a member of the aromatic amino acid hydroxylase (AAAH) family.  It is expressed throughout the central nervous system (CNS) and catalyzes the conversion of tyrosine to L-3,4-dihydroxyphenylalanine (L-DOPA), which can be, through a series of downstream enzymatic reactions, processed into the neurotransmitter and signaling molecule dopamine. Dopamine can then be further altered to produce norepinephrine or epinephrine.