CK17, also known as KRT17, it is the type I intermediate filament chain keratin 17. It is found in nail beds, hair follicles, sebaceous glands, and other epidermal appendages. Mutations in this gene lead to Jackson-Lawler type pachyonychia congenita and steatocystoma multiplex. May play a role in the formation and maintenance of various skin appendages, specifically in determining shape and orientation of hair. May be a marker of basal cell differentiation in complex epithelia and therefore indicative of a certain type of epithelial stem cells. May act as an autoantigen in the immunopathogenesis of psoriasis, with certain peptide regions being a major target for autoreactive T-cells and hence causing their proliferation. Required for the correct growth of hair follicles, in particular for the persistence of the anagen (growth) state. Modulates the function of TNF-alpha in the specific context of hair cycling. Regulates protein synthesis and epithelial cell growth through binding to the adapter protein SFN and by stimulating Akt/mTOR pathway. Involved in tissue repair.
