| HGNC Family | Kallikreins (KLK) |
| Name | kallikrein-related peptidase 2 |
| Description | This gene encodes a member of the grandular kallikrein protein family. Kallikreins are a subgroup of serine proteases that are clustered on chromosome 19. Members of this family are involved in a diverse array of biological functions. The protein encoded by this gene is a highly active trypsin-like serine protease that selectively cleaves at arginine residues. This protein is primarily expressed in prostatic tissue and is responsible for cleaving pro-prostate-specific antigen into its enzymatically active form. This gene is highly expressed in prostate tumor cells and may be a prognostic maker for prostate cancer risk. Alternate splicing results in both coding and non-coding transcript variants. [provided by RefSeq, Jan 2012] |
| Summary |
{"type": "root", "children": [{"type": "p", "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "\n Kallikrein 2 (KLK2 or hK2) is an androgen‐regulated, prostate‐specific serine protease that functions not only as an important biomarker but also as an active mediator of prostate cancer progression. Elevated KLK2 levels are observed in prostate cancer tissues alongside other kallikreins such as PSA and KLK4, suggesting coordinated roles in tumor biology (1). Functionally, recombinant KLK2 has been shown to activate protease‐activated receptor 2 (PAR2), triggering downstream ERK1/2 signaling cascades that promote cancer cell proliferation. This proteolytic signaling underscores a direct role for KLK2 in modulating the cellular environment that supports tumor progression (2). In addition, KLK2 can contribute to oncogenesis via gene fusion events. For instance, fusion of the androgen‐inducible KLK2 gene with the ETS transcription factor ETV4 generates chimeric transcripts that may deregulate normal transcriptional programs, thereby influencing the development and evolution of prostate cancer (3). Collectively, these studies highlight KLK2 as a multifunctional protein that not only facilitates clinically relevant biomarker detection but also actively promotes key signal transduction pathways and genomic rearrangements implicated in the pathogenesis of prostate cancer.\n "}]}, {"type": "t", "text": "\n "}, {"type": "p", "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "\n (1)"}, {"type": "fg", "children": [{"type": "fg_f", "ref": "1"}]}, {"type": "t", "text": ", \n (2)"}, {"type": "fg", "children": [{"type": "fg_f", "ref": "2"}]}, {"type": "t", "text": ", \n (3)."}, {"type": "fg", "children": [{"type": "fg_f", "ref": "3"}]}, {"type": "t", "text": ""}]}, {"type": "rg", "children": [{"type": "r", "ref": 1, "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "T L Veveris-Lowe, M G Lawrence, R L Collard, et al. "}, {"type": "b", "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "Kallikrein 4 (hK4) and prostate-specific antigen (PSA) are associated with the loss of E-cadherin and an epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT)-like effect in prostate cancer cells."}]}, {"type": "t", "text": " "}, {"type": "i", "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "Endocr Relat Cancer (2005)"}]}, {"type": "t", "text": " DOI: "}, {"type": "a", "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "10.1677/erc.1.00958"}], "href": "https://doi.org/10.1677/erc.1.00958"}, {"type": "t", "text": " PMID: "}, {"type": "a", "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "16172196"}], "href": "https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/16172196"}]}, {"type": "r", "ref": 2, "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "Gregory J Mize, Wenbin Wang, Thomas K Takayama "}, {"type": "b", "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "Prostate-specific kallikreins-2 and -4 enhance the proliferation of DU-145 prostate cancer cells through protease-activated receptors-1 and -2."}]}, {"type": "t", "text": " "}, {"type": "i", "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "Mol Cancer Res (2008)"}]}, {"type": "t", "text": " DOI: "}, {"type": "a", "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "10.1158/1541-7786.MCR-08-0096"}], "href": "https://doi.org/10.1158/1541-7786.MCR-08-0096"}, {"type": "t", "text": " PMID: "}, {"type": "a", "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "18567807"}], "href": "https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/18567807"}]}, {"type": "r", "ref": 3, "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "Karin G Hermans, Anke A Bressers, Hetty A van der Korput, et al. "}, {"type": "b", "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "Two unique novel prostate-specific and androgen-regulated fusion partners of ETV4 in prostate cancer."}]}, {"type": "t", "text": " "}, {"type": "i", "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "Cancer Res (2008)"}]}, {"type": "t", "text": " DOI: "}, {"type": "a", "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "10.1158/0008-5472.CAN-08-0198"}], "href": "https://doi.org/10.1158/0008-5472.CAN-08-0198"}, {"type": "t", "text": " PMID: "}, {"type": "a", "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "18451133"}], "href": "https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/18451133"}]}]}]}
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| Synonyms | KLK2A2, HGK-1 |
| Proteins | KLK2_HUMAN |
| NCBI Gene ID | 3817 |
| API | |
| Download Associations | |
| Predicted Functions |
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| Co-expressed Genes |
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| Expression in Tissues and Cell Lines |
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KLK2 has 4,100 functional associations with biological entities spanning 9 categories (molecular profile, organism, chemical, functional term, phrase or reference, disease, phenotype or trait, structural feature, cell line, cell type or tissue, gene, protein or microRNA, sequence feature) extracted from 98 datasets.
Click the + buttons to view associations for KLK2 from the datasets below.
If available, associations are ranked by standardized value
| Dataset | Summary | |
|---|---|---|
| Allen Brain Atlas Adult Human Brain Tissue Gene Expression Profiles | tissues with high or low expression of KLK2 gene relative to other tissues from the Allen Brain Atlas Adult Human Brain Tissue Gene Expression Profiles dataset. | |
| Allen Brain Atlas Aging Dementia and Traumatic Brain Injury Tissue Sample Gene Expression Profiles | tissue samples with high or low expression of KLK2 gene relative to other tissue samples from the Allen Brain Atlas Aging Dementia and Traumatic Brain Injury Tissue Sample Gene Expression Profiles dataset. | |
| Allen Brain Atlas Developing Human Brain Tissue Gene Expression Profiles by Microarray | tissue samples with high or low expression of KLK2 gene relative to other tissue samples from the Allen Brain Atlas Developing Human Brain Tissue Gene Expression Profiles by Microarray dataset. | |
| Allen Brain Atlas Prenatal Human Brain Tissue Gene Expression Profiles | tissues with high or low expression of KLK2 gene relative to other tissues from the Allen Brain Atlas Prenatal Human Brain Tissue Gene Expression Profiles dataset. | |
| BioGPS Cell Line Gene Expression Profiles | cell lines with high or low expression of KLK2 gene relative to other cell lines from the BioGPS Cell Line Gene Expression Profiles dataset. | |
| BioGPS Human Cell Type and Tissue Gene Expression Profiles | cell types and tissues with high or low expression of KLK2 gene relative to other cell types and tissues from the BioGPS Human Cell Type and Tissue Gene Expression Profiles dataset. | |
| Carcinogenome Chemical Perturbation Carcinogenicity Signatures | small molecule perturbations changing expression of KLK2 gene from the Carcinogenome Chemical Perturbation Carcinogenicity Signatures dataset. | |
| CCLE Cell Line Gene CNV Profiles | cell lines with high or low copy number of KLK2 gene relative to other cell lines from the CCLE Cell Line Gene CNV Profiles dataset. | |
| CCLE Cell Line Gene Expression Profiles | cell lines with high or low expression of KLK2 gene relative to other cell lines from the CCLE Cell Line Gene Expression Profiles dataset. | |
| CellMarker Gene-Cell Type Associations | cell types associated with KLK2 gene from the CellMarker Gene-Cell Type Associations dataset. | |
| ChEA Transcription Factor Binding Site Profiles | transcription factor binding site profiles with transcription factor binding evidence at the promoter of KLK2 gene from the CHEA Transcription Factor Binding Site Profiles dataset. | |
| ChEA Transcription Factor Targets | transcription factors binding the promoter of KLK2 gene in low- or high-throughput transcription factor functional studies from the CHEA Transcription Factor Targets dataset. | |
| ChEA Transcription Factor Targets 2022 | transcription factors binding the promoter of KLK2 gene in low- or high-throughput transcription factor functional studies from the CHEA Transcription Factor Targets 2022 dataset. | |
| CMAP Signatures of Differentially Expressed Genes for Small Molecules | small molecule perturbations changing expression of KLK2 gene from the CMAP Signatures of Differentially Expressed Genes for Small Molecules dataset. | |
| COMPARTMENTS Curated Protein Localization Evidence Scores | cellular components containing KLK2 protein from the COMPARTMENTS Curated Protein Localization Evidence Scores dataset. | |
| COMPARTMENTS Curated Protein Localization Evidence Scores 2025 | cellular components containing KLK2 protein from the COMPARTMENTS Curated Protein Localization Evidence Scores 2025 dataset. | |
| COMPARTMENTS Text-mining Protein Localization Evidence Scores | cellular components co-occuring with KLK2 protein in abstracts of biomedical publications from the COMPARTMENTS Text-mining Protein Localization Evidence Scores dataset. | |
| COMPARTMENTS Text-mining Protein Localization Evidence Scores 2025 | cellular components co-occuring with KLK2 protein in abstracts of biomedical publications from the COMPARTMENTS Text-mining Protein Localization Evidence Scores 2025 dataset. | |
| COSMIC Cell Line Gene CNV Profiles | cell lines with high or low copy number of KLK2 gene relative to other cell lines from the COSMIC Cell Line Gene CNV Profiles dataset. | |
| COSMIC Cell Line Gene Mutation Profiles | cell lines with KLK2 gene mutations from the COSMIC Cell Line Gene Mutation Profiles dataset. | |
| CTD Gene-Chemical Interactions | chemicals interacting with KLK2 gene/protein from the curated CTD Gene-Chemical Interactions dataset. | |
| CTD Gene-Disease Associations | diseases associated with KLK2 gene/protein from the curated CTD Gene-Disease Associations dataset. | |
| dbGAP Gene-Trait Associations | traits associated with KLK2 gene in GWAS and other genetic association datasets from the dbGAP Gene-Trait Associations dataset. | |
| DepMap CRISPR Gene Dependency | cell lines with fitness changed by KLK2 gene knockdown relative to other cell lines from the DepMap CRISPR Gene Dependency dataset. | |
| DISEASES Experimental Gene-Disease Association Evidence Scores 2025 | diseases associated with KLK2 gene in GWAS datasets from the DISEASES Experimental Gene-Disease Assocation Evidence Scores 2025 dataset. | |
| DISEASES Text-mining Gene-Disease Association Evidence Scores | diseases co-occuring with KLK2 gene in abstracts of biomedical publications from the DISEASES Text-mining Gene-Disease Assocation Evidence Scores dataset. | |
| DISEASES Text-mining Gene-Disease Association Evidence Scores 2025 | diseases co-occuring with KLK2 gene in abstracts of biomedical publications from the DISEASES Text-mining Gene-Disease Assocation Evidence Scores 2025 dataset. | |
| DisGeNET Gene-Disease Associations | diseases associated with KLK2 gene in GWAS and other genetic association datasets from the DisGeNET Gene-Disease Associations dataset. | |
| DisGeNET Gene-Phenotype Associations | phenotypes associated with KLK2 gene in GWAS and other genetic association datasets from the DisGeNET Gene-Phenoptype Associations dataset. | |
| ENCODE Histone Modification Site Profiles | histone modification site profiles with high histone modification abundance at KLK2 gene from the ENCODE Histone Modification Site Profiles dataset. | |
| ENCODE Transcription Factor Binding Site Profiles | transcription factor binding site profiles with transcription factor binding evidence at the promoter of KLK2 gene from the ENCODE Transcription Factor Binding Site Profiles dataset. | |
| ENCODE Transcription Factor Targets | transcription factors binding the promoter of KLK2 gene in ChIP-seq datasets from the ENCODE Transcription Factor Targets dataset. | |
| GAD Gene-Disease Associations | diseases associated with KLK2 gene in GWAS and other genetic association datasets from the GAD Gene-Disease Associations dataset. | |
| GAD High Level Gene-Disease Associations | diseases associated with KLK2 gene in GWAS and other genetic association datasets from the GAD High Level Gene-Disease Associations dataset. | |
| GDSC Cell Line Gene Expression Profiles | cell lines with high or low expression of KLK2 gene relative to other cell lines from the GDSC Cell Line Gene Expression Profiles dataset. | |
| GeneRIF Biological Term Annotations | biological terms co-occuring with KLK2 gene in literature-supported statements describing functions of genes from the GeneRIF Biological Term Annotations dataset. | |
| GeneSigDB Published Gene Signatures | PubMedIDs of publications reporting gene signatures containing KLK2 from the GeneSigDB Published Gene Signatures dataset. | |
| GEO Signatures of Differentially Expressed Genes for Diseases | disease perturbations changing expression of KLK2 gene from the GEO Signatures of Differentially Expressed Genes for Diseases dataset. | |
| GEO Signatures of Differentially Expressed Genes for Gene Perturbations | gene perturbations changing expression of KLK2 gene from the GEO Signatures of Differentially Expressed Genes for Gene Perturbations dataset. | |
| GEO Signatures of Differentially Expressed Genes for Kinase Perturbations | kinase perturbations changing expression of KLK2 gene from the GEO Signatures of Differentially Expressed Genes for Kinase Perturbations dataset. | |
| GEO Signatures of Differentially Expressed Genes for Small Molecules | small molecule perturbations changing expression of KLK2 gene from the GEO Signatures of Differentially Expressed Genes for Small Molecules dataset. | |
| GEO Signatures of Differentially Expressed Genes for Transcription Factor Perturbations | transcription factor perturbations changing expression of KLK2 gene from the GEO Signatures of Differentially Expressed Genes for Transcription Factor Perturbations dataset. | |
| GEO Signatures of Differentially Expressed Genes for Viral Infections | virus perturbations changing expression of KLK2 gene from the GEO Signatures of Differentially Expressed Genes for Viral Infections dataset. | |
| GO Biological Process Annotations 2015 | biological processes involving KLK2 gene from the curated GO Biological Process Annotations 2015 dataset. | |
| GO Biological Process Annotations 2025 | biological processes involving KLK2 gene from the curated GO Biological Process Annotations2025 dataset. | |
| GO Cellular Component Annotations 2015 | cellular components containing KLK2 protein from the curated GO Cellular Component Annotations 2015 dataset. | |
| GO Molecular Function Annotations 2015 | molecular functions performed by KLK2 gene from the curated GO Molecular Function Annotations 2015 dataset. | |
| GO Molecular Function Annotations 2023 | molecular functions performed by KLK2 gene from the curated GO Molecular Function Annotations 2023 dataset. | |
| GO Molecular Function Annotations 2025 | molecular functions performed by KLK2 gene from the curated GO Molecular Function Annotations 2025 dataset. | |
| GTEx eQTL 2025 | SNPs regulating expression of KLK2 gene from the GTEx eQTL 2025 dataset. | |
| GTEx Tissue Gene Expression Profiles | tissues with high or low expression of KLK2 gene relative to other tissues from the GTEx Tissue Gene Expression Profiles dataset. | |
| GTEx Tissue Gene Expression Profiles 2023 | tissues with high or low expression of KLK2 gene relative to other tissues from the GTEx Tissue Gene Expression Profiles 2023 dataset. | |
| GTEx Tissue Sample Gene Expression Profiles | tissue samples with high or low expression of KLK2 gene relative to other tissue samples from the GTEx Tissue Sample Gene Expression Profiles dataset. | |
| GWAS Catalog SNP-Phenotype Associations | phenotypes associated with KLK2 gene in GWAS datasets from the GWAS Catalog SNP-Phenotype Associations dataset. | |
| GWAS Catalog SNP-Phenotype Associations 2025 | phenotypes associated with KLK2 gene in GWAS datasets from the GWAS Catalog SNP-Phenotype Associations 2025 dataset. | |
| GWASdb SNP-Disease Associations | diseases associated with KLK2 gene in GWAS and other genetic association datasets from the GWASdb SNP-Disease Associations dataset. | |
| GWASdb SNP-Phenotype Associations | phenotypes associated with KLK2 gene in GWAS datasets from the GWASdb SNP-Phenotype Associations dataset. | |
| Heiser et al., PNAS, 2011 Cell Line Gene Expression Profiles | cell lines with high or low expression of KLK2 gene relative to other cell lines from the Heiser et al., PNAS, 2011 Cell Line Gene Expression Profiles dataset. | |
| HPA Tissue Gene Expression Profiles | tissues with high or low expression of KLK2 gene relative to other tissues from the HPA Tissue Gene Expression Profiles dataset. | |
| HPA Tissue Protein Expression Profiles | tissues with high or low expression of KLK2 protein relative to other tissues from the HPA Tissue Protein Expression Profiles dataset. | |
| HPA Tissue Sample Gene Expression Profiles | tissue samples with high or low expression of KLK2 gene relative to other tissue samples from the HPA Tissue Sample Gene Expression Profiles dataset. | |
| Hub Proteins Protein-Protein Interactions | interacting hub proteins for KLK2 from the curated Hub Proteins Protein-Protein Interactions dataset. | |
| HuGE Navigator Gene-Phenotype Associations | phenotypes associated with KLK2 gene by text-mining GWAS publications from the HuGE Navigator Gene-Phenotype Associations dataset. | |
| InterPro Predicted Protein Domain Annotations | protein domains predicted for KLK2 protein from the InterPro Predicted Protein Domain Annotations dataset. | |
| JASPAR Predicted Human Transcription Factor Targets 2025 | transcription factors regulating expression of KLK2 gene predicted using known transcription factor binding site motifs from the JASPAR Predicted Human Transcription Factor Targets dataset. | |
| JASPAR Predicted Transcription Factor Targets | transcription factors regulating expression of KLK2 gene predicted using known transcription factor binding site motifs from the JASPAR Predicted Transcription Factor Targets dataset. | |
| KEGG Pathways 2026 | pathways involving KLK2 protein from the KEGG Pathways 2026 dataset. | |
| Klijn et al., Nat. Biotechnol., 2015 Cell Line Gene CNV Profiles | cell lines with high or low copy number of KLK2 gene relative to other cell lines from the Klijn et al., Nat. Biotechnol., 2015 Cell Line Gene CNV Profiles dataset. | |
| KnockTF Gene Expression Profiles with Transcription Factor Perturbations | transcription factor perturbations changing expression of KLK2 gene from the KnockTF Gene Expression Profiles with Transcription Factor Perturbations dataset. | |
| LINCS L1000 CMAP Chemical Perturbation Consensus Signatures | small molecule perturbations changing expression of KLK2 gene from the LINCS L1000 CMAP Chemical Perturbations Consensus Signatures dataset. | |
| LINCS L1000 CMAP CRISPR Knockout Consensus Signatures | gene perturbations changing expression of KLK2 gene from the LINCS L1000 CMAP CRISPR Knockout Consensus Signatures dataset. | |
| LINCS L1000 CMAP Signatures of Differentially Expressed Genes for Small Molecules | small molecule perturbations changing expression of KLK2 gene from the LINCS L1000 CMAP Signatures of Differentially Expressed Genes for Small Molecules dataset. | |
| LOCATE Curated Protein Localization Annotations | cellular components containing KLK2 protein in low- or high-throughput protein localization assays from the LOCATE Curated Protein Localization Annotations dataset. | |
| LOCATE Predicted Protein Localization Annotations | cellular components predicted to contain KLK2 protein from the LOCATE Predicted Protein Localization Annotations dataset. | |
| MotifMap Predicted Transcription Factor Targets | transcription factors regulating expression of KLK2 gene predicted using known transcription factor binding site motifs from the MotifMap Predicted Transcription Factor Targets dataset. | |
| MSigDB Signatures of Differentially Expressed Genes for Cancer Gene Perturbations | gene perturbations changing expression of KLK2 gene from the MSigDB Signatures of Differentially Expressed Genes for Cancer Gene Perturbations dataset. | |
| NIBR DRUG-seq U2OS MoA Box Gene Expression Profiles | drug perturbations changing expression of KLK2 gene from the NIBR DRUG-seq U2OS MoA Box dataset. | |
| Pathway Commons Protein-Protein Interactions | interacting proteins for KLK2 from the Pathway Commons Protein-Protein Interactions dataset. | |
| PerturbAtlas Signatures of Differentially Expressed Genes for Gene Perturbations | gene perturbations changing expression of KLK2 gene from the PerturbAtlas Signatures of Differentially Expressed Genes for Gene Perturbations dataset. | |
| PerturbAtlas Signatures of Differentially Expressed Genes for Mouse Gene Perturbations | gene perturbations changing expression of KLK2 gene from the PerturbAtlas Signatures of Differentially Expressed Genes for Gene Perturbations dataset. | |
| PFOCR Pathway Figure Associations 2023 | pathways involving KLK2 protein from the PFOCR Pathway Figure Associations 2023 dataset. | |
| PFOCR Pathway Figure Associations 2024 | pathways involving KLK2 protein from the Wikipathways PFOCR 2024 dataset. | |
| PID Pathways | pathways involving KLK2 protein from the PID Pathways dataset. | |
| Reactome Pathways 2014 | pathways involving KLK2 protein from the Reactome Pathways dataset. | |
| Reactome Pathways 2024 | pathways involving KLK2 protein from the Reactome Pathways 2024 dataset. | |
| Roadmap Epigenomics Histone Modification Site Profiles | histone modification site profiles with high histone modification abundance at KLK2 gene from the Roadmap Epigenomics Histone Modification Site Profiles dataset. | |
| RummaGEO Drug Perturbation Signatures | drug perturbations changing expression of KLK2 gene from the RummaGEO Drug Perturbation Signatures dataset. | |
| RummaGEO Gene Perturbation Signatures | gene perturbations changing expression of KLK2 gene from the RummaGEO Gene Perturbation Signatures dataset. | |
| Tabula Sapiens Gene-Cell Associations | cell types with high or low expression of KLK2 gene relative to other cell types from the Tabula Sapiens Gene-Cell Associations dataset. | |
| TargetScan Predicted Nonconserved microRNA Targets | microRNAs regulating expression of KLK2 gene predicted using nonconserved miRNA seed sequences from the TargetScan Predicted Nonconserved microRNA Targets dataset. | |
| TCGA Signatures of Differentially Expressed Genes for Tumors | tissue samples with high or low expression of KLK2 gene relative to other tissue samples from the TCGA Signatures of Differentially Expressed Genes for Tumors dataset. | |
| TISSUES Curated Tissue Protein Expression Evidence Scores | tissues with high expression of KLK2 protein from the TISSUES Curated Tissue Protein Expression Evidence Scores dataset. | |
| TISSUES Curated Tissue Protein Expression Evidence Scores 2025 | tissues with high expression of KLK2 protein from the TISSUES Curated Tissue Protein Expression Evidence Scores 2025 dataset. | |
| TISSUES Experimental Tissue Protein Expression Evidence Scores | tissues with high expression of KLK2 protein in proteomics datasets from the TISSUES Experimental Tissue Protein Expression Evidence Scores dataset. | |
| TISSUES Experimental Tissue Protein Expression Evidence Scores 2025 | tissues with high expression of KLK2 protein in proteomics datasets from the TISSUES Experimental Tissue Protein Expression Evidence Scores 2025 dataset. | |
| TISSUES Text-mining Tissue Protein Expression Evidence Scores | tissues co-occuring with KLK2 protein in abstracts of biomedical publications from the TISSUES Text-mining Tissue Protein Expression Evidence Scores dataset. | |
| TISSUES Text-mining Tissue Protein Expression Evidence Scores 2025 | tissues co-occuring with KLK2 protein in abstracts of biomedical publications from the TISSUES Text-mining Tissue Protein Expression Evidence Scores 2025 dataset. | |
| WikiPathways Pathways 2024 | pathways involving KLK2 protein from the WikiPathways Pathways 2024 dataset. | |
