Chymostatin

A highly specific chymotrypsin inhibitor produced by actinomycetes. it also has an anticarcinogeneic property. It was found to supress the incidence of squamous cell carcinomas of the anal gland. The mechanism by which this and other anticarcinogenic protease inhibitors supress carcinogenesis is not fully understood. Presumably these agents inhibit one or more intracellular proteases whose functions are essential for the induction and /or expression of the transformed pheotype.