Gene/Protein Disease Symptom Drug Enzyme Compound
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Query: UNIPROT:P01189 (beta-endorphin)
 21,003 document(s) hit in 31,850,051 MEDLINE articles (0.00 seconds)

This report considers the potential usefulness of adrenocorticotropic hormone (ACTH) determinations in diagnosis and in prognosis for therapy of patients with carcinoma of the lung but without clinical Cushing's syndrome. The report is based on radioimmunoassay data from 129 patients, including 62 with lung cancers and 67 with nonmalignant pulmonary conditions. Elevated plasma ACTH was found in 21 of 24 patients with untreated cancer and the hormone was detected in tumor extracts and/or bronchial washings from the remaining 3. Elevation of plasma ACTH was found in only 10 of 38 treated patients. Absence of clinical Cushing's syndrome in spite of high plasma ACTH concentrations is explained by the observation that the predominant form of ectopic ACTH in plasma is immunoreactive but nonbioactive 'big' ACTH. Prolonged survival, for longer than 19 months, was observed in only 5 patients: all patients with low plasma ACTH after resection of the lung tumor and 2 of 3 patients with low plasma ACTH without therapy. ACTH was found in all available malignant tissue, primary and metastatic, from the lung carcinoma group,but not in normal lung or in 5 tumors metastatic to the lung. Of the 39 patients diagnosed initially to have chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, 14 showed plasma ACTH elevation. However, 3 of these patients with the highest concentrations subsequently manifested carcinoma or carcinoma in situ.
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PMID:Ectopic production of big ACTH in carcinoma of the lung. Its clinical usefulness as a biologic marker. 16 43

A 51-year-old woman with typical Cushing's syndrome of about 9 years duration was shown to have a gastric carcinoid tumor. Plasma levels of ACTH and cortisol were elevated and lacked the normal diurnal rhythm. Urinary excretion of steroids was unaffected by the administration of either metyrapone or dexamethasone. Fluctuation in urinary steroid excretion, as well as transient hypokalemic alkalosis and glycosuria suggested periodic hormonogenesis. The extirpated gastric carcinoid was shown to contain immunoreactive ACTH and beta-MSH. However, the biologic ACTH activity was undetectable by in vivo steroidogenic assay. By gel filtration, it was demonstrated that both tumor and plasma ACTH was predominately "big" ACTH. Although postoperatively she developed hypoadrenocorticism severe enough to require ACTH treatment, her pituitary-adrenal function was gradually restored. This is the first documented case of ectopic ACTH syndrome caused by gastric carcinoid in which successful cure was achieved by surgery.
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PMID:Gastric carcinoid with ectopic production of ACTH and beta-MSH. 17 2

Electron microscopy of an amphophil pituitary adenoma surgically removed from a 51-year-old woman who had Nelson's syndrome revealed that the tumor was composed of melanocorticotroph cells. This finding is consistent with the view that in the human pituitary gland one single cell type produces both adrenocorticotropic hormone (ACTH) and melanocyte-stimulating hormone (MSH). In contrast to the ultrastructure of pituitary adenomas associated with Cushing's syndrome, no or only very few microfilaments were detected in the cytoplasm of the tumor cells, suggesting that adrenocortical steroids are required for the formation of microfilaments. The presence or absence of microfilaments in the tumor cells may be regarded as a distinguishing ultrastructural feature between Cushing's syndrome and Nelson's syndrome. It appears that changes in the level of circulating corticoids may affect the ultrastructural features of melanocorticotroph cells not only in normal pituitaries but also in adenohypophyseal adenomas.
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PMID:Light and electron microscopic features of a pituitary adenoma in Nelson's syndrome. 17 83

Big corticotropin (adrenocroticotropic hormone, ACTH), an immunoreactive form of ACTH with low biological activity and which elutes in the void volume on Sephadex G-50 gel filtration, is found in plasma and extracts of human pituitary and tumour. Controlled tryptic digestion of big ACTH releases a product with full corticotropic activity which is indistinguishable from the (1-39) ACTH with respect to size, charge and susceptibility to tryptic digestion. Immunoreactive ACTH, predominantly in the big form, is found in virtually all tissue extracts of carcinoma primary to or metastatic from the lung, but not of carcinoma metastatic to the lung, and even in precancerous lung lesions. The absence of clinical Cushing syndrome in patients with carcinoma of the lung and moderate elevation of plasma concentrations of ACTH is due to the low biological activity of big ACTH. Prolonged survival (for more than two years) of patients with lung carcinoma has been observed only in those whose plasma ACTH is low before therapy or after resection of the lung tumour. Rabbit, rat and mouse pituitaries contain an intermediate sized ACTH but the usual 1-39 peptide predominates in the pituitaries of monkey, sheep, dog, cat and guinea pig, as well as man. The hormonal form of ACTH appears to be an important factor regulating the cortisol/corticosterone ratio in mammalian adrenal corticoid secretion because administration of porcine ACTH to rabbits alters the adrenal secretory pattern so as to decrease corticosterone production and increase cortisol production.
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PMID:Multiple forms of corticotropin (adrenocorticotropic hormone, ACTH) and their significance. 18 Dec 23

A benign adrenal medullary tumor that secreted adrenocorticotropic hormone (ACTH) was associated with bilateral adrenocortical hyperplasia and clinically evident Cushing syndrome. The clinical and chemical features were those usually associated with pituitary Cushing disease, including partial suppression of urinary OH steroids after administration of 8 mg of dexamethasone. The fractionization of the tumor's ACTH revealed 70% little "biologically active" ACTH, which is usually found in this concentration only in pituitary tissue.
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PMID:ACTH-producing pheochromocytoma. 18 97

A 61 year old woman presented with profound hyponatremia and markedly low serum osmolality. Urine osmolality was greater than the serum osmolality, an abnormality that was corrected by water restriction, suggesting inappropriate ADH secretion. Although there were no physical signs of Cushing's syndrome, her serum potassium level was low and markedly elevated levels of plasma and urine corticosteroids were not altered by the administration of large amounts of dexamethasone, suggesting the ectopic ACTH-MSH syndrome. Plasma levels of immunoreactive ACTH and beta-MSH were elevated. At autopsy, a metastastic oat cell carcinoma of the lung, not detected antemortem by chest roentgenograms and bronchoscopy, was found. Immunoreactive ADH, ACTH and beta-MSH were detected in the primary tumor and in metastases to the liver. beta-MSH was also detected in the spleen, in which metastases were observed. This is the first documented case of the simultaneous production of ADH, ACTH and beta-MSH by neoplastic tissue associated with clinical manifestations of the syndrome of inappropriate ADH secretion and the ectopic ACTH-MSH syndrome.
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PMID:Ectopic production of antidiuretic hormone (adh), adrenocorticotrophic hormone (ACTH) and beta-melanocyte stimulating hormone (beta-MSH) by an oat cell carcinoma of the lung. 18 5

The adenylate cyclase responses of the human GH or ACTH producing pituitary adenomas and ectopic ACTH producing tumors to TRH, LH-RH, biogenic amines, peptides hormones, PGE1 and rat median eminence extract (MEE) have been examined. Out of 4 GH producing pituitary adenomas obtained from patients with active acromegaly at hypophysectomy two were stimulated by TRH, two by LH-RH, three by norepinephrine, one by dopamine, four by PGE1 and none by serotonin. Glucagon stimulated the adenylate cyclase in one of three and MEE in both of two tested. The positive responses of paradoxical GH release after TRH and/or LH-RH before surgery in these patients coincidentally related to the response of adenylate cyclase of each pituitary adenoma. There seems, however, to be no consistent correlation between the adenylate cyclase responses to biogenic amines and the GH release after L-Dopa or 5-hydroxytroptophan tested. The adenylate cyclase of a pituitary adenoma from case of Cushing's disease was stimulated by LH-RH, norepinephrine glucagon and MEE but not by TRH. Plasma levels of ACTH, beta-MSH and cortisol increased after LH-RH but not after TRH in this patient before hypophysectomy. The adenylate cyclase of two ectopic ACTH producing tumors (gastric carcinoid and malignant thymoma) was activated by TRH, LH-RH, norepinephrine, epinephrine, serotonin, PGE1 and MEE. These results indicate the presence of multiple hormone receptors in GH or ACTH producing pituitary adenomas and ectopic ACTH producing tumors, and suggest that the paradoxical GH or ACTH release after TRH and/or LH-RH injection in acromegaly and Cushing's syndrome might be caused by an alteration of the cellular membrane receptors of the pituitary adenomas.
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PMID:Adenylate cyclase of GH and ACTH producing tumors of human: activation by non-specific hormones and other bioactive substances. 19 Feb 56

Plasma immunoreactive corticotrophin (ACTH) and lipotrophin (LPH) were measured in patients with raised circulating concentrations from a pituitary or an ectopic source. They were measured again in seven patients after they had received hydrocortisone. Plasma ACTH concentrations were higher than LPH concentrations in patients with a pituitary source of their hormones, whereas this relation was reversed when the source was ectopic. After hydrocortisone administration the half life of immunoreactive ACTH was 40 minutes and that of LPH 95 minutes, resulting in a reversal of the normal relation of ACTH to LPH. The use of two antisera with different specificities for measuring LPH has further shown that pituitary LPH differs from ectopic LPH. Relatively less gamma-LPH than beta-LPH was produced from ectopic sources, the relation being reversed in patients with a pituitary source for their raised concentrations. Measuring plasma LPH as well as ACTH might therefore help in deciding whether a patient with Cushing's syndrome has a pituitary or ectopic source of ACTH, which sometimes presents a difficult clinical problem.
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PMID:Plasma immunoreactive corticotrophin and lipotrophin in Cushing's syndrome and Addison's disease. 19 8

A young man presented with rapidly developing Cushing's syndrome which was due to the ectopic secretion of ACTH and beta-MSH-like material from hepatic tumour deposits, possibly originating from biliary radicals. This association of the ectopic ACTH syndrome has not previously been described. During the 22 month course of the illness the plasma immunoreactive ACTH and 'beta-MSH' concentrations rose by logarithmic progression. The plasma calcitonin concentration was also raised but did not change during the last 12 months. At any stage of the illness the plasma concentration of the ecotopically produced hormones was stable except that after hydrocortisone there were inconstant variations. During the course of the illness the ectopic ACTH became biologically less potent. This ineffectural ACTH was present in the plasma, in the tumour, and in the medium in which the tumour was cultured, in a large molecular weight form. This 'big ACTH' differed from the normal ACTH found in the patient's pituitary and from authentic ACTH in its immunochemical character: the C-terminal antigenic determinant (33-39 region of ACTH) was masked in the large molecular weight form but was uncovered after extraction in neutral buffer and this 'big ACTH' was more readily extracted from the tumour at pH 7.0. The tumour tissue also contained immunoreactive beta-MSH-like material and immunoreactive calcitonin which resembled calcitonin M chromatographically.
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PMID:'Big ACTH' and calcitonin in an ectopic hormone secreting tumour of the liver. 19 56

This study deals with 11 cases of thyroid medullary carcinoma of which 7 were familial cases including 3 cases of Sipple's syndrome and 4 cases of sporadic cases. There were also 2 cases of Cushing's syndrome. In addition to the previously described English literatures about human medullary carcinoma of the thyroid, the rod-shaped body with cristae and an abundant glycogen particles in the cytoplasm, nuclear inclusion bodies of cytoplasmic invagination and microvilli at the surface membrane of gland formation were found in our cases. The mean and mode diameters of secretory granules of all familial cases with only calcitonin secretion were larger than those of the sporadic cases with ectopic ACTH and beta-MSH in addition to calcitonin secretion. Ultrastructural study on non-cancerous follicles of grossly normal thyroid of two cases of early familial medullary carcinoma disclosed apparently increased C-cells which were not intrathyroidal metastases. It is supposed that the increased C-cells in the thyroid of the familial cases are multicentric C-cell hyperplasia.
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PMID:Ultrastructural study of thyroid medullary carcinoma. 20 Nov 48


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