Corin: a key protein of an adaptive renal mechanism to respond to salt variation?

The protease corin generates atrial natriuretic peptide and affects blood pressure and salt-water homeostasis. Under dietary salt challenge, corin knockout mice show blood pressure exacerbation and significant weight gain due to water and salt retention. This phenotype involves the epithelial sodium channel but is independent of the renin-angiotensin-aldosterone system. This suggests that corin has an important role in a new adaptive mechanism of the response to variations of salt in the diet.