Cleaves aggrecan, a cartilage proteoglycan, and may be involved in its turnover. May play an important role in the destruction of aggrecan in arthritic diseases. Could also be a critical factor in the exacerbation of neurodegeneration in Alzheimer disease. Cleaves aggrecan at the '392-Glu-|-Ala-393' site.
Subcellular locations: Secreted, Extracellular space, Extracellular matrix
Expressed in brain, lung and heart . Expressed at very low level in placenta and skeletal muscles . Isoform 2: Detected in osteoarthritic synovium (, ).