Gene/Protein Disease Symptom Drug Enzyme Compound
Pivot Concepts:   Target Concepts:
Query: UNIPROT:P61278 (somatostatin)
 22,083 document(s) hit in 31,850,051 MEDLINE articles (0.00 seconds)

Neurotrophins, which are structurally related to nerve growth factor, have been shown to promote survival of various neurons. Recently, we found a novel activity of a neurotrophin in the brain: Brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) enhances expression of various neuropeptides. The neuropeptide differentiation activity was then compared among neurotrophins both in vivo and in vitro. In cultured neocortical neurons, BDNF and neurotrophin-5 (NT-5) remarkably increased levels of neuropeptide Y and somatostatin, and neurotrophin-3 (NT-3) also increased these peptides but required higher concentrations. At elevating substance P, however, NT-3 was as potent as BDNF. In contrast, NGF had negligible or no effect. Neurotrophins administered into neonatal brain exhibited slightly different potencies for increasing these neuropeptides: The most marked increase in neuropeptide Y levels was obtained in the neocortex by NT-5, whereas in the striatum and hippocampus by BDNF, although all three neurotrophins increased somatostatin similarly in all the brain regions examined. Overall spatial patterns of the neuropeptide induction were similar among the neurotrophins. Neurons in adult rat brain can also react with the neurotrophins and alter neuropeptide expression in a slightly different fashion. Excitatory neuronal activity and hormones are known to change expression of neurotrophins. Therefore, neurotrophins, neuronal activity, and hormones influence each other and all regulate neurotransmitter/peptide expression in developing and mature brain. Physiological implication of the neurotransmitter/peptide differentiation activities is also discussed.
 ...
PMID:Regulation of neuropeptide expression in the brain by neurotrophins. Potential role in vivo. 757 4

The influence of neurotrophins on GABAergic properties of developing striatal neurons was investigated both in vivo and in vitro. Brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) specifically elevated cellular GABA content in striatal culture without altering neuronal survival. Neurotrophin-5 produced a similar effect on GABA, but nerve growth factor and neurotrophin-3 had no effect. An increase in GABA content in the striatum was also observed following BDNF injections into the cerebroventricle of neonatal rats. The increase of GABA levels in culture mainly resulted from an increase in holoenzyme activity of the GABA synthetic enzyme glutamic acid decarboxylase (GAD) and elevation of GABA uptake activity. In BDNF-treated striatal cultures, the newly differentiated neurons extended elaborate neurites and exhibited strong GAD immunoreactivity. These alterations were presumably caused by the upregulation of mRNA encoding GAD67 and the neuronal GABA transporter GAT-1. BDNF treatment also promoted other phenotypic differentiation of striatal neurons: BDNF increased the frequency of parvalbumin-immunoreactive neurons and calbindin-immunoreactive neurons and neuropeptide content for neuropeptide Y and somatostatin. These observations suggest that neurotrophins may contribute to phenotypic differentiation of GABAergic neurons in the developing striatum.
 ...
PMID:Brain-derived neurotrophic factor promotes differentiation of striatal GABAergic neurons. 808 42

Neuropeptide protein levels in hippocampal interneurons exhibit a considerable maturation in postnatal animals. This study characterizes the role of neuronal activity in determining neuropeptide protein levels in postnatal hippocampal interneurons, and the involvement of neurotrophins. In hippocampal slices from 7-day-old rats cultured for 2 weeks, treatment with the gamma-aminobutyric acidA (GABAA) receptor antagonist bicuculline increased the staining intensity and the number of neurons immunoreactive for neuropeptide Y (NPY). An opposite effect was observed when non-N-methyl-d-aspartate (non-NMDA) excitatory transmission was blocked. The effects of either treatment were reversed after return to control medium. These findings were similar to those previously obtained on the effects of activity on somatostatin immunostaining. Blockade of endogenous tyrosine kinase neurotrophin receptors using K252a prevented the effects of bicuculline on NPY- and somatostatin-immunoreactive neurons. Application of exogenous neurotrophin-3 (NT-3) increased NPY and somatostatin protein levels in long-term but not short-term cultures, while nerve growth factor (NGF) had no effect. In contrast, brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) or neurotrophin-4 (NT-4) did not affect equally NPY and somatostatin immunoreactivity: they mimicked the effects of bicuculline treatment on NPY-immunoreactive neurons, but exerted no conspicuous effect on somatostatin immunostaining. These results indicate that although neuronal activity plays a major role in determining neuropeptide protein levels in postnatal hippocampal interneurons, its effects on different neuropeptides might be exerted through different mechanisms, with or without the mediation of BDNF or NT-4.
 ...
PMID:BDNF and NT-4 differentiate two pathways in the modulation of neuropeptide protein levels in postnatal hippocampal interneurons. 1021 18

Several neuropeptides affect the sleep-wake cycle, for example, vasoactive intestinal polypeptide, cholecystokinin octapeptide, orexin, somatostatin, insulin, leptin, ghrelin, neuropeptide Y and cortistatin, which regulate food ingestion. There are also proteins from the immunological system: tumor necrosis factor-alpha, interleukin (IL)-1beta IL-4, IL-10, IL-13, as well as trophic molecules, such as growth hormone-releasing hormone, growth hormone, prolactin, brain-derived neurotrophic factor and nerve growth factor, neurotrophin-3 and neurotrophin-4. Based on this information, we believe that some functions of sleep can be suggested. One of these functions could be the regulation of energy, since many, if not all, of the neuropeptides that regulate feeding affect the level of alertness. Likewise, the immunological system and the trophic molecules establish a dialog with the brain during sleep in order to reestablish neuronal structure. These proteins are the expression of genes that accomplish the function of regulating our waking and our sleep, suggesting the important control the genome is exerting on this activity.
 ...
PMID:The role of neuropeptides in sleep modulation. 1560 11