WAP four-disulfide core domain protein 8 (WFDC8)

WAP four-disulfide core domain protein 8 (WFDC8) is a small secreted protein, encoded by the WFDC8 gene located on human chromosome 20, and is a member of the whey acidic protein four-disulfide core (WFDC) family[1][3][5][7]. Members of this family possess a characteristic domain of 40–50 amino acids containing eight conserved cysteine residues, which form four disulfide bonds creating a stable structural core known as the WAP or WFDC motif[5][3]. Most of these proteins act as extracellular protease inhibitors; however, the specific molecular function of WFDC8 remains less defined, though it is presumed to share structural and mechanistic properties with related WAP domain-containing proteins[3][5]. WFDC8 is predominantly expressed in secretory tissues and may be involved in protease inhibition during reproductive or immune processes, but direct functional, pathological, or therapeutic evidence is currently lacking[1][5][7]. Some studies mention possible transcriptional repressor activity or implication in disease only indirectly (for example, in gene fusion events), but these remain speculative and are not specifically confirmed for the non-fused form of WFDC8[4]. Thus, while WFDC8 shares features of known immunomodulatory and antiprotease proteins in the WFDC family, unlike family members such as WFDC2 (HE4) or SLPI, it is not presently a recognized therapeutic target, nor does it have established roles in human disease, drug interaction, or validated biomarker utility[3][5][7].

Other names

C20orf170dJ461P17.1WAP8HEL-S-292epididymis secretory protein Li 292epididymis secretory sperm binding proteinprotease inhibitor WAP8putative protease inhibitor WAP8testicular secretory protein Li 68WAP motif protein 1