Endocrine Abstracts

Pituitary growth hormone (GH) like a number of other protein hormones, shows an episodic pattern of evolution, in which periods of prolonged near-stasis are interrupted by short bursts of rapid change. During mammalian evolution two episodes of rapid change of GH have been identified, one in the Artiodactyla and one in the Primates. The latter underlies the well known species specificity of human GH. Cloning and characterisation of GH genes for a number of mammalian species ha...

Evolution of pituitary growth hormone (GH) in mammals has generally been very slow but with short bursts of rapid change in the evolution of some groups. Such a period of rapid change occurred in the evolution of GH in primates or a primate ancestor and gave rise to the marked species specificity of human GH. By cloning and sequencing of GH genes from a prosimian, the slow loris (Nycticebus pygmaeus), and a New World monkey, the marmoset, (Callithrix jacchus) we ...

The sequence of pituitary growth hormone (GH) is generally strongly conserved in mammals, but short bursts of rapid change during the evolution of primates and artiodactyls have led to marked differences in primary structure and biological specificity in human and ruminant GHs. Recent molecular studies have shown that Cetacea are nested within Artiodactyla, and the combined grouping (Artiodactyla and Cetacea) has been termed the Cetartiodactyla. To explore further GH evolution...