PGA5: Pepsinogen 5, group I (pepsinogen A). Pepsinogens are the inactive precursors of pepsin, the major acid protease found in the stomach. Pepsin is one of the main proteolytic enzymes secreted by the gastric mucosa. Pepsin consists of a single polypeptide chain and arises from its precursor, pepsinogen, by removal of a 41 amino acid segment from the N-terminus. Pepsinogen is synthesized in the stomach lining, and hydrochloric acid, also produced by the gastric mucosa, is necessary to convert the inactive enzyme and to maintain the optimum acidity (pH 1-3) for pepsin function. Pepsin is particularly effective in cleaving peptide bonds involving aromatic amino acids. Pepsin shows extremely broad specificity, although bonds involving phenylalanine and leucine are preferred, many others are also cleaved to some extent. PGA5 is a member of the subfamily A1 within the pepsin family and is the predominant endopeptidase in the gastric juice of vertebrates. PGA5 is inhibited by ovUS-1, a uterine serpin.
