Background：Urokinase plasminogen activator surface receptor(uPAR, also known as PLAUR or CD87) is a 45-65 kDa, highly glycosylated, GPI-anchored membrane protein. It contains three homologous domains(D1-D3) of which the N-terminal one(D1) represents the uPA-binding domain. After binding to uPAR, urokinase plasminogen activator(uPA) cleaves plasminogen, generating the active protease plasmin which is involved in a wide variety of physiologic and pathologic processes. In addition to regulating proteolysis, uPAR has important function in cell adhesion, migration and proliferation. Studies reveal that uPAR expression is elevated during inflammation and tissue remodelling and in many human cancers, in which it frequently indicates poor prognosis.(PMID 20027185; 12461559)
