Inhibition of proteases as a novel therapeutic strategy in the treatment of metabolic, inflammatory and functional diseases of the gastrointestinal tract

• Endogenous proteases play a key physiological role.
• Protease inhibition became an efficient therapeutic option with fewer side effects.
• Here we examine the action of proteases and their specific inhibitors in GI tract.
• In particular, we focus on metabolic, functional and inflammatory GI diseases.
• We also suggest novel treatments based on protease inhibitors targeting GI tract.

Proteases are widely distributed in the human body and are crucially involved in the modulation of physiological processes in the gastrointestinal (GI) tract. They also have a major role in the etiology and the course of GI diseases. This review discusses the pharmacology of proteases and medical application of their inhibitors in the GI tract. In particular, we focus on metabolic disorders, such as diabetes type 2, inflammatory bowel diseases (IBD), irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) and abdominal pain. Based on recent papers in the field of pharmacology and documented clinical trials, we suggest future treatment options employing protease inhibitors.