A matrix metalloproteinase inhibitor (INN stem –mastat[1]) inhibits matrix metalloproteinases.
Because they inhibit cell migration, they have antiangiogenic effects.
The most notorious endogenous metalloproteinases are tissue inhibitors of metalloproteinases, followed by cartilage-derived angiogenesis inhibitors.
Exogenous matrix metalloproteinase inhibitors were developed as anticancer drugs.
[2] Examples include: Metalloproteinase inhibitors are found in numerous marine organisms, including fish, cephalopods, mollusks, algae and bacteria.