Calcitonin gene-related peptide regulates amino acid absorption across rat jejunum

The calcitonin gene related peptide (CGRP) is widely distributed in the enteric nervous system and gut afferents. Its role in normal digestion and absorption is not characterised. This study is conducted to elucidate whether CGRP regulates amino acid absorption in the small intestine. In in vivo experiments using the single-pass perfusion technique, intravenous infusion of CGRP (250–750 pmol/kg-min) reduced alanine absorption by 35–40%. The effects were completely blocked by the antagonist hCGRP (8–37). Moreover, intravenous infusion of CGRP antagonist blocked the inhibitory effect of intraluminal capsaicin perfusion on alanine absorption. Similarly, intracerebral injection of CGRP decreased alanine absorption, an effect which was reduced by vagotomy. In vitro experiments using isolated jejunal strips showed that CGRP reduced alanine absorption in a dose-dependent manner. At 6 pM, CGRP decreased alanine absorption by 33%. Similarly, CGRP reduced the absorption of proline and taurine by 20 and 11.5%, respectively. Kinetic studies revealed that CGRP reduces alanine influx into intestinal epithelial cells by inhibiting the affinity of the carriers. It is demonstrated that CGRP is involved in the regulation of jejunal amino acid absorption through intrinsic (enteric) and extrinsic (central) neural mechanisms.     

Calcitonin gene-related peptide and its receptor in the thymus

Calcitonin gene-related peptide (CGRP), a 37-amino acid residue neuropeptide, was immunostained in rat thymus at two sites: a subpopulation of thymic epithelial cells, namely subcapsular/perivascular cells, were heavily stained besides some nerve fibers surrounding arteries and arterioles. The administration of nanomolar concentrations of rat -CGRP dose-dependently raised intracellular cyclic adenosine monophosphate (cAMP) levels in isolated rat thymocytes (half-maximum stimulation 1 nM) but not in cultured rat thymic epithelial cells. Peptides structurally related to CGRP (i.e., rat calcitonin or amylin) had no effect. CGRP(8–37), an N-terminally truncated form, acted as an antagonist. Peripheral blood lymphocytes did not respond to CGRP, suggesting that receptors are present only on a subpopulation of thymocytes but not on mature T cells. This was substantiated by visualization of CGRP receptors on single cells by use of CGRP-gold and -biotin conjugates of established biological activity: only a small proportion of isolated thymocytes was surface labeled. In situ, the CGRP conjugates labeled receptors on large thymocytes residing in the outer cortical region of rat thymus pseudolobules. Thus, immunoreactive CGRP is found in subcapsular/perivascular thymic epithelial cells and acts via specific CGRP receptors on thymocytes by raising their intracellular cAMP level. It is suggested that CGRP is a paracrine thymic mediator that might influence the differentiation, maturation, and proliferation of thymocytes.     

降钙素基因相关肽的研究

降钙素基因相关肽(cGRP)是近年来发现的一种新肽,广泛分布于中枢和外周神经系统以及某些非神经组织,在心血管和消化道等部位尤其丰富;它参与机体多种调节扼制,特别是感觉和胃肠功能的调节,对血压、血流、心率等也有较强的调节作用。     

Calcitonin gene-related peptide and muscle activity regulate acetylcholine receptor alpha-subunit mRNA levels by distinct intracellular pathways

In cultured chicken myotubes, calcitonin gene-related peptide (CGRP), a peptide present in spinal cord motoneurons, increased by 1.5-fold the number of surface acetylcholine receptors (AChRs) and by threefold AChR alpha-subunit mRNA level without affecting the level of muscular alpha-actin mRNA. Cholera toxin (CT), an activator of adenylate cyclase, produced a similar effect, which did not add up with that of CGRP. In contrast, tetrodotoxin, a blocker of voltage-sensitive Na+ channels, elevated the level of AChR alpha-subunit mRNA on top of the increase caused by either CGRP or CT. 12-O-Tetradecanoyl phorbol-13-acetate (TPA), an activator of protein kinase C, markedly decreased the cell surface and total content of [125I]alpha BGT-binding sites and reduced the rate of appearance of AChR at the surface of the myotubes without reducing the level of AChR alpha-subunit mRNA. Moreover, TPA inhibited the increase of AChR alpha-subunit mRNA caused by tetrodotoxin without affecting that produced by CGRP or CT. Under the same conditions, TPA decreased the level of muscular alpha-actin mRNA and increased that of nonmuscular beta- and gamma-actins mRNA. These data suggest that distinct second messengers are involved in the regulation of AChR biosynthesis by CGRP and muscle activity and that these two pathways may contribute to the development of different patterns of AChR gene expression in junctional and extrajunctional areas of the muscle fiber.     

Agrin induces phosphorylation of the nicotinic acetylcholine receptor.

Agrin causes acetylcholine receptors (AChRs) on chick myotubes in culture to aggregate, forming specializations that resemble the postsynaptic apparatus at the vertebrate skeletal neuromuscular junction. Here we report that treating chick myotubes with agrin caused an increase in phosphorylation of the AChR beta, gamma, and delta subunits. H-7, a potent inhibitor of several protein serine kinases, blocked agrin-induced phosphorylation of the gamma and delta subunits, but did not prevent either agrin-induced AChR aggregation or phosphorylation of the beta subunit. Experiments with anti-phosphotyrosine antibodies demonstrated that agrin caused an increase in tyrosine phosphorylation of the beta subunit that began within 30 min of adding agrin to the myotube cultures, reached a plateau by 3 hr, and was blocked by treatments known to block agrin-induced AChR aggregation. Anti-phosphotyrosine antibodies labeled agrin-induced specializations as they do the postsynaptic apparatus. These results suggest that agrin-induced tyrosine phosphorylation of the beta subunit may play a role in regulating AChR distribution.     

Calcitonin gene-related peptide stimulates rat gastric somatostatin release in vitro

The influence of rat calcitonin gene-related peptide (rCGRP) on the secretion of gastric somatostatin and gastrin was studied in vitro using the isolated, vascularly perfused rat stomach preparation. rCGRP stimulated somatostatin secretion dose-dependently reaching 3-fold stimulation at 1 microM. The kinetics of somatostatin response were characterized by a sharp increase in the initial phase of rCGRP perfusion followed by sustained elevated levels. Gastrin secretion was moderately suppressed at 1 nM to 100 nM CGRP. Somatostatin responses to half-maximal stimulation with 100 nM CGRP were not affected by concomitant perfusion of atropine, propranolol, and tetrodotoxin. It is concluded that increases in somatostatin release in response to CGRP are probably due to a direct effect on the gastric somatostatin-producing D-cell and may be important for the potent acid-inhibitory activity of CGRP.     

Calcitonin gene-related peptide in the human hypothalamus

Calcitonin gene-related peptide (CGRP)-like immunoreactivity (LI) in the human hypothalamus was investigated by radioimmunoassay and by immunocytochemistry. CGRP-LI was detected from two hypothalami obtained at autopsy (2.1 and 7.0 ng/g wet tissue) by radioimmunoassay. Reverse phase high performance liquid chromatography revealed that most of the CGRP-LI in the human hypothalamus was eluted in an identical position with synthetic human CGRP. For immunocytochemistry, human hypothalami obtained at autopsy were fixed and cryostat-sectioned at 40 microns. Free floating sections were immunostained with antibody to CGRP. CGRP-immunoreactive cell bodies were found in the supraoptic nucleus, paraventricular nucleus and infundibular nucleus. These findings indicate that CGRP exists in the cell bodies of the supraoptic nucleus, paraventricular nucleus and infundibular nucleus in the human hypothalamus and CGRP may play some roles in the endocrine and other functions of the human hypothalamus.     

Ionic properties of the acetylcholine receptor in cultured rat myotubes

The acetylcholine reversal potential (Er) of cultured rat myotubes is -3mV. When activated, the receptor is permeable to K+ and Na+, but not to Cl- ions. Measurement of Er in Tris+-substituted, Na-free medium also indicated a permeability to Tris+ ions. Unlike adult frog muscle the magnitude of Er was insensitive to change in external Ca++ (up to 30 mM) or to changes in external pH (between 6.4 and 8.9). The equivalent circuit equation describing the electrical circuit composed of two parallel ionic batteries (EK and ENa) and their respective conductances (gK and gNa), which has been generally useful in describing the Er of adult rat and frog muscle, could also be applied to rat myotubes when Er was measured over a wide range of external Na+ concentrations. The equivalent circuit equation could not be applied to myotubes bathed in media of different external K+ concentrations. In this case, the Er was more closely described by the Goldman constant field equation. Under certain circumstances, it is known that the receptor in adult rat and frog muscle can be induced to reversibly shift from behavior described by the equivalent circuit equation to that described by the Goldman equation. Attempts to similarly manipulate the responses of cultured rat myotubes were unsussessful. These trials included a reduction in temperature (15 degress C), partial alpha-bungarotoxin blodkade, and activation of responses with the cholinergic agonist, decamethonium.     

Calcitonin gene-related peptide and hypertension

Capsaicin-sensitive sensory nerves participate in the regulation of cardiovascular functions both in the normal state and the pathophysiology of hypertension through the actions of potent vasodilator neuropeptides, including calcitonin gene-related peptide (CGRP). CGRP, a very potent vasodilator, is the predominant neurotransmitter in capsaicin-sensitive sensory nerves, and plays an important role in the initiation, progression and maintenance of hypertension via: (1) the alterations in its synthesis and release and/or in vascular sensitivity response to it; (2) interactions with pro-hypertensive systems, including renin-angiotensin-aldosterone system, sympathetic nervous system and endothelin system; and (3) anti-hypertrophy and anti-proliferation of vascular smooth muscle cells. The decrease in CGRP synthesis and release contributes to the elevated blood pressure, as shown in the spontaneously hypertensive rats, alpha-CGRP knockout mice, Dahl-salt or phenol-induced hypertensive rats. In contrast, the increase in CGRP levels or the enhancement of vascular sensitivity response to CGRP plays a beneficial compensatory depressor role in the development of hypertension, as shown in deoxycorticosterone-salt, sub-total nephrectomy-salt, N(omega)-nitro-L-arginine methyl ester or two-kidney, one-clip models of hypertension in rats. We found that rutaecarpine causes a sustained depressor action by stimulation of CGRP synthesis and release via activation of vanilloid receptor subtype 1 (VR1) in hypertensive rats, which reveals the therapeutic implications of VR1 agonists for treatment of hypertension.     

Regulation of tyrosine phosphorylation of the nicotinic acetylcholine receptor at the rat neuromuscular junction.

The nicotinic acetylcholine receptor (AChR) from the electric organ of T. californica is highly phosphorylated on tyrosine residues in vivo. In contrast, tyrosine phosphorylation of the AChR in rat myotube cultures is barely detectable. To determine whether this low level of tyrosine phosphorylation of the AChR in muscle cell cultures is due to a lack of neuronal innervation, we examined tyrosine phosphorylation of the AChR in rat diaphragm in vivo. Immunofluorescent double labeling of cryostat sections of rat diaphragm using antibodies specific for phosphotyrosine or the AChR showed a direct colocalization of phosphotyrosine with the AChR at the neuromuscular junction. Using anti-phosphotyrosine antibodies, immunoblots of AChR partially purified from rat diaphragm demonstrated that the rat AChR contains high levels of phosphotyrosine. Denervation of rat diaphragm induced a time-dependent decrease in tyrosine phosphorylation of the AChR, as measured by immunocytochemical and immunoblot techniques. Tyrosine phosphorylation of the AChR occurred late in the development of the neuromuscular junction, between postnatal days 7 and 14. These studies suggest that muscle innervation regulates tyrosine phosphorylation of the AChR and that tyrosine phosphorylation may play an important role in the developmental regulation of the AChR.     

Calcitonin gene-related peptide (CGRP) in the female rat urogenital tract

CGRP-immunoreactivity was found throughout the female rat urogenital tract by specific radioimmunoassay, and shown to be present in nerve fibres by immunocytochemistry. The highest concentrations of CGRP-like immunoreactivity were found in the urinary tract, with lower levels in regions of the genitalia. Chromatographic analysis of bladder and vaginal extracts on Sephadex G-50 columns and HPLC revealed at least three CGRP-immunoreactive peaks. The major peak emerged in the same position as synthetic rat CGRP. CGRP nerve fibres were associated mainly with blood vessels, non-vascular smooth muscle, squamous epithelium and uterine and cervical glands, and were particularly abundant in the ureter and bladder. CGRP-immunoreactivity was depleted by neonatal treatment with capsaicin and after surgical section of pelvic and/or hypogastric nerves. Immunocytochemistry demonstrated that depletion occurred predominantly in the mucosal layer of the urogenital tract. These findings indicate a sensory function for most of the CGRP-immunoreactive nerves in the rat urogenital tract.     

Immobilization of nicotinic acetylcholine receptors in mouse C2 myotubes by agrin-induced protein tyrosine phosphorylation

Agrin induces the formation of highly localized specializations on myotubes at which nicotinic acetylcholine receptors (AChRs) and many other components of the postsynaptic apparatus at the vertebrate skeletal neuromuscular junction accumulate. Agrin also induces AChR tyrosine phosphorylation. Treatments that inhibit tyrosine phosphorylation prevent AChR aggregation. To examine further the relationship between tyrosine phosphorylation and receptor aggregation, we have used the technique of fluorescence recovery after photobleaching to assess the lateral mobility of AChRs and other surface proteins in mouse C2 myotubes treated with agrin or with pervanadate, a protein tyrosine phosphatase inhibitor. Agrin induced the formation of patches in C2 myotubes that stained intensely with anti-phosphotyrosine antibodies and within which AChRs were relatively immobile. Pervanadate, on the other hand, increased protein tyrosine phosphorylation throughout the myotube and caused a reduction in the mobility of diffusely distributed AChRs, without affecting the mobility of other membrane proteins. Pervanadate, like agrin, caused an increase in AChR tyrosine phosphorylation and a decrease in the rate at which AChRs could be extracted from intact myotubes by mild detergent treatment, suggesting that immobilized receptors were phosphorylated and therefore less extractable. Indeed, phosphorylated receptors were extracted from agrin-treated myotubes more slowly than nonphosphorylated receptors. AChR aggregates at developing neuromuscular junctions in embryonic rat muscles also labeled with anti- phosphotyrosine antibodies, suggesting that tyrosine phosphorylation could mediate AChR aggregation in vivo as well. Thus, agrin appears to induce AChR aggregation by creating circumscribed domains of increased protein tyrosine phosphorylation within which receptors become phosphorylated and immobilized.     

Calcitonin gene-related peptide increases in the dorsal root ganglia of adjuvant arthritic rat

We examined the effect of adjuvant arthritis on the content of immunoreactive calcitonin gene-related peptide (iCGRP) in the dorsal root ganglia at L4-L6 levels and the spinal cord at a lumbar level in rats. Arthritis was induced by inoculating adjuvant into both hind-paws twice at a 10 day interval. In the arthritic rats 15 days after the first inoculation (day 15), the content of iCGRP was significantly increased in the dorsal root ganglia, with no change in the dorsal and ventral horns. The content in the dorsal root ganglia was still high on day 26 and had decreased by day 40. An intrathecal injection of colchicine (0.2 mg, 18 hr before killing) enhanced the increase of iCGRP in the dorsal root ganglia and decreased it in the dorsal horn of arthritic rats, although in noninoculated rats such treatment produced no significant changes in the content of iCGRP in both regions. The arthritis-induced increase in the content of iCGRP in the dorsal root ganglia was significantly reduced after treatment with the antiinflammatory analgesic, diclofenac sodium, in a dose of 3 mg/kg/day, PO for 10 days. Swelling and hyperalgesia in the hind-paw were depressed after such treatment. These results suggest that adjuvant arthritis with long-lasting inflammation with pain facilitates the turnover, especially biosynthesis, of CGRP in primary afferent neurons.     

Calcitonin and calcitonin gene-related peptide alter the excitability of neurons in rat forebrain

Individual neurons in the hypothalamus, thalamus, cortex, and other forebrain areas of urethane-anesthetized, male rats were iontophoretically tested for their membrane sensitivity to salmon calcitonin (CT), human CT, and CT gene-related peptide (CGRP). Extracellular recording of unit activity revealed that depression of neuronal firing was the predominant effect of iontophoretically applied salmon CT (35 of 74 cells tested). Few neurons responded to salmon CT with an increase in firing rate (N = 3). When CGRP was iontophoretically applied a pattern of response resembling that of salmon CT was observed. CGRP was predominantly inhibitory and excited those neurons whose firing rate was increased by salmon CT. Inhibition was also the predominant effect of human CT. However, no neurons were excited by human CT. The results clearly demonstrate that a subpopulation of neurons with membrane sensitivity to salmon CT, human CT, and CGRP are present in the rat forebrain. This finding suggests that modulation of neuronal activity may underlie the behavioral and biochemical effects of these peptides when administered centrally. Endogenous CGRP and CT-like peptides in rat brain may be capable of regulating these events as neurotransmitters or neuromodulators.     

Calcitonin gene-related peptide: novel neuropeptide

Calcitonin gene-related peptide (CGRP) is a 37 amino acid peptide encoded in the calcitonin gene. Its expression is dependent on tissue-specific alternative RNA processing: mRNA for CGRP predominates in the brain, whilst calcitonin (CT) mRNA predominates in thyroid C cells. The existence of this hitherto unsuspected peptide was predicted by mRNA analysis and demonstrated using antibodies raised against a synthetic peptide corresponding to the predicted C-terminal sequence of CGRP. The distribution of CGRP in the central and peripheral nervous system and its co-localization in some neurons with substance P (SP) or acetylcholine suggests several possible roles in autonomic, sensory and motor functions. Its actions appear to depend on the existence of specific CGRP receptors in target tissues, distinct from the receptors for CT but bearing some resemblance to them.