The action of neutrophil serine proteases on elastin and its precursor

► Detailed insights into the degradation of elastin by serine elastases. ► HLE, PR3 and CG tolerate hydrophobic and/or aliphatic amino acids. ► CG also prefers bulky amino acids including Leu, Lys, Phe and Tyr. ► The three elastases release matrikines, with CG producing the highest number. ► Peptides containing the motifs GVYPG, GFGPG and GVLPG stimulate pro-MMP-1 secretion.