Hormone peptide

The development of peptide chemistry in the second half of this century is so closely related to hormone research that it appears necessary to dedicate a chapter to some historically significant accomplishments in this area. 

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The posterior lobe of the pituitary, ie, the neurohypophysis, is under direct nervous control (1), unlike most other endocrine organs. The hormones stored in this gland are formed in hypothalamic nerve cells but pass through nerve stalks into the posterior pituitary. As early as 1895 it was found that pituitrin [50-57-7] an extract of the posterior lobe, raises blood pressure when injected (2), and that Pitocin [50-56-6] (Parke-Davis) causes contractions of smooth muscle, especially in the utems (3). Isolation of the active materials involved in these extracts is the result of work from several laboratories. Several highly active posterior pituitary extracts have been discovered (4), and it has been deterrnined that their biological activities result from peptide hormones, ie, low molecular weight substances not covalendy linked to proteins (qv) (5). 

D. H. Schlesinger, ed.. Neurohypophyseal Peptide Hormones and Other Biologically Active Peptides, Developments in Endocrinology, Vol. 13, Elsevier Science, New York, 1981. 

The lUBMB Commission on Nomenclature has issued a number of recommendations dealing with areas of a more biochemical nature (72), such as peptide hormones (86), conformation of polypeptide chains (87), abbreviations for nucleic acids and polynucleotides (88), iron—sulfur proteins (89), enzyme units (90), etc. The Commission has also produced rules and recommendations for naming enzymes (91,92). 

Natriuretic Peptide Diuretics. Atrial natriuretic peptide (ANP), an endogenous diuretic, natriuretic, and vasodilator, is a peptide hormone primarily synthesized and stored by atrial cardiocytes, and secreted by the atria in response to mechanical stretch of the atria. It was discovered in the cmde extracts of atria in 1981 (51). ANP is also known as anaritide [95896-08-5] atrial natriuretic factor [104595-79-1] (ANF) auriculin ... 

The situation is different for other examples—for example, the peptide hormone glucagon and a small peptide, metallothionein, which binds seven cadmium or zinc atoms. Here large discrepancies were found between the structures determined by x-ray diffraction and NMR methods. The differences in the case of glucagon can be attributed to genuine conformational variability under different experimental conditions, whereas the disagreement in the metallothionein case was later shown to be due to an incorrectly determined x-ray structure. A re-examination of the x-ray data of metallothionein gave a structure very similar to that determined by NMR. 

Insulin is a peptide hormone, secreted by the pancreas, that regulates glucose metabolism in the body. Insufficient production of insulin or failure of insulin to stimulate target sites in liver, muscle, and adipose tissue leads to the serious metabolic disorder known as diabetes mellitus. Diabetes afflicts millions of people worldwide. Diabetic individuals typically exhibit high levels of glucose in the blood, but insulin injection therapy allows diabetic individuals to maintain normal levels of blood glucose. 

A peptide hormone rapidly inhibiting osteoclast activity. The relevance of calcitonin in human calcium homeostasis is not well understood. Calcitonin has been used for the treatment of osteoporosis, although due to the availability of more potent drugs with less side effects, and the lack of clear data on the anti-fracture efficacy of calcitonin, its clinical use has been steadily declining. 

Kinins are a group of peptide hormones of 8-11 residues that act locally as proinflammatory agents, often through the release of powerful downstream effectors such as nitric oxide and/or prostaglandins. 

Motilin is a 22-amino acid peptide hormone, secreted by the enterochromaffin cells of the small intestine,... 

Natriuretic peptides are a family of peptide hormones. All of them contain a 17-amino acid long ring that is closed by a disulfide bond between two cysteine residues. ANP (atrial natriuretic peptide) is mainly expressed in the atria of the heart, whereas BNP (B-type natriuretic peptide) is synthesized in the ventricular myocardium. CNP occurs mainly in the endothelium and is thought to have a paracrine function. ANF and BNF lower blood pressure by a direct effect on smooth muscle and on the salt retention in the kidney. Natriuretic peptides bind and activate particulate guanylyl cyclases. 

The predominant cell type in the pancreatic islets of Langerhans. The main secretory product of the (3 -cell is the peptide hormone insulin which has vital actions for the control of nutrient homeostasis and cellular differentiation. 

Prolactin is peptide hormone secreted by the pituitary gland. It acts on prolactin receptors in breast tissue where it stimulates production of casein and lactalbu-min. It also acts on the testes and ovaries to inhibit the effects of gonadotrophins. Since the secretion of prolactin is under tonic dopaminergic inhibition by the hypothalamus, dopamine D2-receptor antagonists... 

The renin-angiotensin-aldosterone system (RAAS) generates the peptide hormone angiotensin II and subsequently the mineralocorticoid aldosterone, which both exert considerable impact on blood pressure ( blood pressure control) and fluid homeostasis, and... 

A second focus for chemical engineers in agriculture is the improvement of veterinary pharmaceuticals (e.g., peptide hormones that promise to stimulate growth, fecundity, and feed efficiency in farm animals) and vaccines. The prospects for improvement of these compounds parallel the bright prospects for human pharmaceuticals and vaccines, and the requirements for chemical engineering expertise are similar. 

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