An upregulated versican mRNA expression in the kidney was associated with the degree of histological damage [15], and histological accumulation of versican was observed in the tubulointerstitium of patients with proteinuric nephropathy [9], and in cellular crescents and periglomerular areas of patients with human crescentic glomerulonephritis [16]; therefore the ability to degrade the accumulated proteoglycan might be a factor that ameliorates the disease burden. The gene discussed is VCAN; the disease is crescentic glomerulonephritis.