Endocrine Abstracts

CRF mediates numerous complementary stress-related endocrine (HPA), autonomic and behavioral responses. CRF antagonists block many stress-induced responses in experimental animals. Furthermore, perturbations of the CRF system or HPA have been reported in human affective disorders. CRF acts through two Class B G protein coupled receptors derived from two genes, which have alternative splice variants and distinct expression patterns. Mice null for CRF-R1 exhibit reduced basal an...

Skeletal muscle is the principal tissue responsible for insulin-stimulated glucose disposal and is thus the major site of peripheral insulin resistance. Urocortin 2 (Ucn2), a corticotropin releasing factor (CRF) family member and the type 2 CRF receptor (CRFR2) are highly expressed in skeletal muscle. To determine the physiological role of Ucn2, we generated mice deficient in this peptide. Using glucose and insulin tolerance tests and hyperinsulinemic euglycemic glucose clamp ...