| Budget Amount *help |
¥4,420,000 (Direct Cost: ¥3,400,000、Indirect Cost: ¥1,020,000)
Fiscal Year 2012: ¥1,430,000 (Direct Cost: ¥1,100,000、Indirect Cost: ¥330,000)
Fiscal Year 2011: ¥1,040,000 (Direct Cost: ¥800,000、Indirect Cost: ¥240,000)
Fiscal Year 2010: ¥1,950,000 (Direct Cost: ¥1,500,000、Indirect Cost: ¥450,000)
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| Research Abstract |
A new strategy for discovering biologically active peptides has been developed. It involves mass spectrometry-based profiling of secretory peptides released from cells with secretory granules. Selected human cell lines of endocrine origin were analyzed for their secretory peptide profiles using liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry. A large set of secretory peptide sequences was used to identify processing sites of secretory proteins. Candidates for biologically active peptides were selected from the peptide processing maps and tested on selected bioassay systems. This approach has resulted in the identification of previously uncharacterized biologically active peptides, designated NERP-3 and NERP-4, which raise intracellular calcium levels in hypothalamus and pituitary tissues. Furthermore, it was found that NERP-3 stimulates vasopressin release from an in vitro preparation of the hypothalamic supraoptic nucleus, where vasopressin neurons reactive to NERP-3 were identified. This peptidomics approach has the potential to identify biologically active peptides that are beyond the reach of conventional strategies.
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