Human urinary kallikrein - biochemical and physiological aspects.

The h i s t o r y of k a l l i k r e i n begins w i t h the d i s c o v e r y of u r i n a r y k a l l i k r e i n more than f i f t y years ago. The r e n a l o r i g i n of u r i n a r y k a l l i k r e i n , though not f i n a l l y proved, i s l a r g e l y accepted. A p o s s i b l e r o l e of k a l l i k r e i n i n the r e g u l a t i o n of kidney f u n c t i o n and blood pressure has been debated f o r a long time (Pisano and Aus t e r , 1976). However, n e i t h e r the question f o r i t s o r i g i n , nor f o r i t s p h y s i o l o g i c a l r o l e i s f i n a l l y s e t t l e d .