Search results for "PEPTIDE"

GLP-2 receptor expression in excitatory and inhibitory enteric neurons and its role in mouse duodenum contractility

2011

Background  Glucagon-like peptide 2 (GLP-2), a nutrient-responsive hormone, exerts various actions in the gastrointestinal tract that are mediated by a G-protein coupled receptor called GLP-2R. A little information is available on GLP-2R expression in enteric neurons and nothing on the interstitial cells of Cajal (ICC). Methods  We investigated presence and distribution of the GLP-2R in the mouse duodenum by immunohistochemistry and the potential motor effects of GLP-2 on the spontaneous and neurally evoked mechanical activity. Key Results  The GLP-2R was expressed by the myenteric and submucosal neurons. Labelling was also present in nerve varicosities within the circular muscular layer an…

'TRPing' synaptic ribbon function in the rat pineal gland: neuroendocrine regulation involves the capsaicin receptor TRPV1.

2009

Synaptic ribbons (SRs) are presynaptic structures thought to regulate and facilitate multivesicular release. In the pineal gland, they display a circadian rhythm with higher levels at night paralleling melatonin synthesis. To gain more insight into the processes involved and the possible functions of these structures, a series of experiments were conducted in rodents. We studied the regional distribution of a molecular marker of pineal SRs, the kinesin motor KIF3A in the gland. Respective immunoreactivity was abundant in central regions of the gland where sympathetic fibers were less dense, and vice versa, revealing that intercellular communication between adjacent pinealocytes is enhanced …

Neuropeptide Y (NPY)-like immunoreactivity in the guinea pig pineal organ.

1986

Relatively little is known about mammalian pineal neuropeptides. In the present study neuropeptide Y-like immunoreactivity (NPY-LI) was examined in the guinea pig pineal gland. NPY-LI was restricted to few intrapineal nerve fibers of faint fluorescence intensity. They showed no preferential localization with regard to the different pineal portions. As catecholaminergic fibers are abundant in the guinea pig pineal gland, the scarcity of NPY-LI fibers indicates that in the pineal colocalization of noradrenaline and NPY-LI is not a regular feature, in contrast to other organs. The possibility exists that in the pineal NPY-LI fibers are not of peripheral sympathetic but of central origin.

Trigeminal innervation of the mammalian pineal gland.

1999

There is evidence that the trigeminal (Gasserian) ganglia innervate the mamma- lian pineal gland and serve in its regulation in addition to the sympathetic and cholinergic as well as further influences. By means of immunohistochemical methods, previous studies demonstrated fibers containing calcitonin gene-related peptide (CGRP-LI) or substance P (SP) in the superficial pineal of various mammalian species. In addition, SP and the related tachykinin, neurokinin A, were detected by radioimmunoassay and HPLC, respectively, in the rat and human pineal gland. In the present study, retrograde neuronal tracing upon injection of a tracer substance into the superfical pineal gland of rats was used i…

Pro-enkephalin opioid peptides are abundant in porcine and bovine splenic nerves, but absent from nerves of rat, mouse, hamster, and guinea-pig spleen

1995

The opioidergic innervation of the mammalian spleen and possible species differences were investigated. Light-microscopic immunohistochemistry revealed that splenic nerves of bovine and porcine spleen, but not of rat, mouse, hamster and guinea-pig spleen contained proenkephalin-derived opioidergic innervation. Immunoreactivity to both prodynorphin and pro-opiomelanocortin was absent from splenic nerves. In bovine and porcine spleen, fibers immunoreactive for met-enkephalin, met-enkephalin-Arg-Phe, met-enkephalin-Arg-Gly-Leu, leu-enkephalin and peptide F formed perivascular plexus, traveled in trabecular connective tissue, and extended into the capsule. Spatial relationships with immune cell…

2013

Following traumatic brain injury (TBI) neuroinflammatory processes promote neuronal cell loss. Alpha-melanocyte-stimulating hormone (α-MSH) is a neuropeptide with immunomodulatory properties, which may offer neuroprotection. Due to short half-life and pigmentary side-effects of α-MSH, the C-terminal tripeptide α-MSH(11–13) may be an anti-inflammatory alternative. The present study investigated the mRNA concentrations of the precursor hormone proopiomelanocortin (POMC) and of melanocortin receptors 1 and 4 (MC1R/MC4R) in naive mice and 15 min, 6, 12, 24, and 48 h after controlled cortical impact (CCI). Regulation of POMC and MC4R expression did not change after trauma, while MC1R levels incr…

Glucagon-like peptide-1 relaxes gastric antrum through nitric oxide in mice.

2010

Abstract Glucagon-like-peptide-1 (GLP-1) is a proglucagon-derived peptide expressed in the intestinal enteroendocrine-L cells and released after meal ingestion. GLP-1 reduces postprandial glycemia not only by its hormonal effects, but also by its inhibitory effects on gastrointestinal motility. Recently, we showed that GLP-1 acts in the enteric nervous system of mouse intestine. Therefore our working hypothesis was that GLP-1 may have also a direct influence on the gastric mechanical activity since the major part of experimental studies about its involvement in the regulation of gastric motility have been conducted in in vivo conditions. The purposes of this study were (i) to examine exogen…

Relaxation induced by N-terminal fragments of chromogranin A in mouse gastric preparations.

2007

Abstract A definitive role for chromogranin A (CGA)-derived fragments in the control of the gastrointestinal smooth muscle contractility has not been yet established. The purpose of the present study was to evaluate, in vitro , the effects of the recombinant vasostatin 1–78 (VS-1), CGA 7–57 and CGA 47–66 on the mouse gastric mechanical activity, recording the changes of intraluminal pressure. VS-1, CGA 7–57 and CGA 47–66 produced concentration-dependent relaxations. Mouse anti-vasostatin-1 monoclonal antibody 5A8, recognising the region 53–57, abolished the relaxation induced by VS-1, indicating the specificity of the effect. The relaxation was significantly reduced by tetrodotoxin (TTX), b…

A new method to value efficiency of enzyme blends for pancreatic tissue digestion.

2010

Islet transplantation, since the 90’s, has been resulting to be one of the best successful example of human cell therapy. Nevertheless, islet isolation procedure is not completely standardized; in fact, more than fifty percent of islets procedures don’t arrive to their transplantation. This is due both to the variability of donor’s pancreas and to an unpredictable enzymatic blend efficiency. Enzymes used in pancreas digestion are extracted from Clostridium histolyticum bacteria and digest several substrates. In particular they have strong collagenolytic activity compared to vertebrate collagenases. However, several impediments persist in human islet isolation success probably due to the var…

Regulation of serotonin release from the intestinal mucosa.

1991

Summary In the mammalian intestine serotonin (5-hydroxytryptamine, 5-HT) is present in high concentrations in the enterochromaffin cells. The release of 5-HT from the intestinal mucosa is regulated by a complex pattern of neuronal and humoral inputs to the enterochromaffin cells. The enterochromaffin cells appear to be endowed with different inhibitory ( α 2 -adrenoceptors, GABA A - and GABA B -receptors, histamine H 3 -receptors, receptors for vasoactive intestinal polypeptide and somatostatin) as well as stimulatory receptors ( β -adrenoceptors, muscarine and nicotine receptors). The physiological significance of this complex system of receptors is suggested by experiments which demonstra…