Dipeptidyl peptidase 8 is an

enzyme Enzymes () are proteins that act as biological catalysts by accelerating chemical reactions. The molecules upon which enzymes may act are called substrate (chemistry), substrates, and the enzyme converts the substrates into different molecule ...

that in humans is encoded by the ''DPP8''

gene In biology, the word gene (from , ; "... Wilhelm Johannsen coined the word gene to describe the Mendelian units of heredity..." meaning ''generation'' or ''birth'' or ''gender'') can have several different meanings. The Mendelian gene is a b ...

. This gene encodes a member of the

peptidase A protease (also called a peptidase, proteinase, or proteolytic enzyme) is an enzyme that catalyzes (increases reaction rate or "speeds up") proteolysis, breaking down proteins into smaller polypeptides or single amino acids, and spurring the ...

S9B family, a small family of dipeptidyl peptidases that are able to cleave peptide substrates at a prolyl bond. The encoded protein shares similarity with

Dipeptidyl peptidase-4 Dipeptidyl peptidase-4 (DPP4), also known as adenosine deaminase complexing protein 2 or CD26 ( cluster of differentiation 26) is a protein that, in humans, is encoded by the ''DPP4'' gene. DPP4 is related to FAP, DPP8, and DPP9. The enzyme w ...

in that it is ubiquitously expressed, and

hydrolyzes Hydrolysis (; ) is any chemical reaction in which a molecule of water breaks one or more chemical bonds. The term is used broadly for substitution, elimination, and solvation reactions in which water is the nucleophile. Biological hydrolysis ...

the same substrates. These similarities suggest that, like dipeptidyl peptidase IV, this protein may play a role in

T-cell A T cell is a type of lymphocyte. T cells are one of the important white blood cells of the immune system and play a central role in the adaptive immune response. T cells can be distinguished from other lymphocytes by the presence of a T-cell ...

activation and immune function. Alternatively spliced transcript variants encoding different

isoforms A protein isoform, or "protein variant", is a member of a set of highly similar proteins that originate from a single gene or gene family and are the result of genetic differences. While many perform the same or similar biological roles, some iso ...

have been described. A relatively specific inhibitor of DPP8 and DPP9, Val-boroPro -, leads to increased activation of the

inflammasome Inflammasomes are cytosolic Multiprotein complex, multiprotein oligomers of the innate immune system responsible for the activation of inflammatory responses. Activation and assembly of the inflammasome promotes proteolytic cleavage, maturation an ...

though both NLRBP1 and

CARD8 Caspase recruitment domain-containing protein 8 is a protein that in humans is encoded by the ''CARD8'' gene. Function Caspase recruitment domain (CARD)-containing proteins, such as CARD8, are involved in pathways leading to activation of cas ...

and can trigger pyroptosis.

References

;Notes ;Further reading * * * * * * * * * * * * * {{gene-15-stub