Endocrine Abstracts

Somatostatin and dopamine receptors are the major Gi-coupled receptors in somatotrope cells that inhibit hormone secretion from the anterior pituitary. Here, we adapted a novel fluorescence-based screening assay to characterize somatostatin and dopamine receptor signaling in a time-resolved manner. This minimal-invasive technique provides a robust and reliable read out for ligand-induced receptor activation in permanent cell lines and primary pituitary culture. The ...

The human somatostatin receptor 3 (hsst3) is expressed in about 50% of all neuroendocrine tumours. The sst3 receptor is unique among somatostatin receptors which can initiate apoptosis of tumour cells through activation of the tumour suppressor p53. Furthermore, treatment of the sst3 receptor with somatostatin or stable somatostatin analogues such as octreotide or pasireotide can inhibited tumour cell proliferation. However, at present little is known about the agonist-induced...