Endocrine Abstracts

The human tachykinin, endokinin (EK), is processed into a 41mer in the human placenta. As synthetic EK(10–41) is as potent as substance P at the NK1R, it is likely that the primary function of EK is as the principal placental NK1R agonist mediating local beneficial vasodilatation. Although the emetic and sialogogic actions of substance P are well known, its complete absence from the placenta probably explains why its role in pregnancy has not been studie...

The majority of patients with Cushing’s syndrome are ACTH-dependent, but the diagnosis of ACTH-dependence, and then the differential diagnosis between Cushing’s disease and the ectopic ACTH syndrome, is dependent on the measurement of ACTH. In the mammalian adult anterior pituitary, POMC is cleaved into a variety of products including the ‘normal’ ACTH(1-39). In the pars intermedia (present in the human fetus and most mammals), ACTH is cleaved further by th...

The majority of patients with Cushing’s syndrome are ACTH-dependent, but the diagnosis of ACTH-dependence, and then the differential diagnosis between Cushing’s disease and the ectopic ACTH syndrome, is dependent on the measurement of ACTH. In the mammalian adult anterior pituitary, POMC is cleaved into a variety of products including the ‘normal’ ACTH(1-39). In the pars intermedia (present in the human fetus and most mammals), ACTH is cleaved further by th...

Nausea/vomiting induced by smoke inhalation is a common phenomenon, possibly explaining why many people who have a naturally strong reaction rarely take up smoking tobacco. The tachykinins are an ancient family of bioactive peptides distinguished by the common C-terminal motif, Phe-X-Gly-Leu-Met-amide. In humans, there are four members: substance P (SP), endokinin (EK) also known as hemokinin (HK), neurokinin A and neurokinin B, which sig...

Nausea/vomiting induced by smoke inhalation is a common phenomenon, possibly explaining why many people who have a naturally strong reaction rarely take up smoking tobacco. The tachykinins are an ancient family of bioactive peptides distinguished by the common C-terminal motif, Phe-X-Gly-Leu-Met-amide. In humans, there are four members: substance P (SP), endokinin (EK) also known as hemokinin (HK), neurokinin A and neurokinin B, which sig...

Plasma adrenocorticotrophin (ACTH) is extremely labile and far from an ideal analyte for use in the diagnosis of Cushing’s syndrome. Processing of ACTH by some ectopic tumours releases high levels of smaller ACTH-like fragments, α-MSH and CLIP, which can interfere with individual antibodies in current diagnostic immunoassays. Furthermore, cross-reactivity with the precursor of ACTH, pro-opiomelanocortin (POMC), increases the likelihood of erroneous interpretations an...