Cardiovascular disease
Cardiovascular disease: Pcsk6 is increasing interest as indicator and factor of cardiovascular disease. Pcsk6 KO mice was shown to develop salt-sensitive hypertension due to failure of pro-corin activation crucial to atrial natriuretic peptide regulation of blood pressure. A hypertensive patient was found to have a G/A mutation on the PCSK6 gene that resulted in a Asp282Asn (D282N) substitution at the Pcsk6 catalytic domain, which in turn, hinders corin processing. In vascular remodeling, Pcsk6 was found to induce smooth muscle cell migration in response to PDGFB by activating MMP14. When Pcsk6 was knocked out, the intimal hyperplasia response to "in vivo" carotid ligation was lowered.