Growth hormone-releasing hormone and pituitary adenylate cyclase-activating polypeptide in the reproductive system

Growth hormone-releasing hormone (GHRH) and pituitary adenylate cyclase-activating polypeptide (PACAP) are both members of the glucagon superfamily that, with gonadotropins, act at central and peripheral levels as paracrine and autocrine coregulators of reproductive function. GHRH and PACAP are anci...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Trends in Endocrinology & Metabolism 2002-12, Vol.13 (10), p.428-435
Main Authors: Moretti, Costanzo, Mencacci, Cecilia, Frajese, Giovanni Vanni, Cerilli, Marco, Frajese, Gaetano
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Animals
Biological and medical sciences
Evolution, Molecular
Female
Fundamental and applied biological sciences. Psychology
Gene Expression Regulation
Genital Neoplasms, Female - physiopathology
Genital Neoplasms, Male - physiopathology
Gonads - physiology
GRF
GRF receptors
Growth Hormone-Releasing Hormone - genetics
Growth Hormone-Releasing Hormone - metabolism
Hormones and neuropeptides. Regulation
Humans
Hypothalamo-Hypophyseal System - physiology
Hypothalamus. Hypophysis. Epiphysis. Urophysis
Male
Mammals
Neuropeptides - genetics
Neuropeptides - metabolism
Neurotransmitter Agents - genetics
Neurotransmitter Agents - metabolism
ovary
PAC1-R
PAC1-R(3a)
PAC1-R(TM4)
PACAP
Pituitary Adenylate Cyclase-Activating Polypeptide
Receptors, Neuropeptide - genetics
Receptors, Neuropeptide - metabolism
Receptors, Pituitary Adenylate Cyclase-Activating Polypeptide
Receptors, Pituitary Hormone - genetics
Receptors, Pituitary Hormone - metabolism
Receptors, Pituitary Hormone-Regulating Hormone - genetics
Receptors, Pituitary Hormone-Regulating Hormone - metabolism
Reproduction - genetics
Reproduction - physiology
Signal Transduction - physiology
testis
Vertebrates: endocrinology
VPAC1-R
VPAC2-R
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Description
Summary:Growth hormone-releasing hormone (GHRH) and pituitary adenylate cyclase-activating polypeptide (PACAP) are both members of the glucagon superfamily that, with gonadotropins, act at central and peripheral levels as paracrine and autocrine coregulators of reproductive function. GHRH and PACAP are ancient peptides. Their original forms (both 27 amino acids long) were encoded by a single ancestral gene, several duplications of which led to the genes that encode the neuropeptides of the glucagon superfamily. In the male and female reproductive tracts, GHRH and PACAP interact with a subset of G protein-coupled receptors that are structurally similar to the PACAP receptor and variants of the vasoactive intestinal peptide receptor, and share several biological actions. These are related mainly to the modulation of cAMP-dependent and other signal transduction pathways in several cells of the pituitary–gonadal axis. The recent discovery that antagonists of GHRH and PACAP suppress the growth of human cancer cell lines that are derived from reproductive tissues indicates the potential importance of these peptides as local regulators of cell division, cell cycle arrest, differentiation and cell death. Are GHRH and PACAP important paracrine factors modulating cAMP-dependent and other signaling pathways in the pituitary-gonadal axis, and could their antagonists be considered new candidates for cancer therapy?
ISSN:1043-2760
1879-3061
DOI:10.1016/S1043-2760(02)00632-X