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Expression of Orexin A and its Receptor 1 in the Epididymis of the S outh A merican Camelid Alpaca ( V icugna pacos )
Author(s) -
Liguori G.,
Paino S.,
Mirabella N.,
Squillacioti C.,
Luca A.,
Vittoria A.
Publication year - 2014
Publication title -
anatomia, histologia, embryologia
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.34
H-Index - 35
eISSN - 1439-0264
pISSN - 0340-2096
DOI - 10.1111/ahe.12046
Subject(s) - epididymis , orexin , biology , receptor , cytoplasm , immunohistochemistry , orexin a , orexin receptor , medicine , blot , endocrinology , neuropeptide , microbiology and biotechnology , gene , immunology , biochemistry , genetics , sperm
Summary Orexins A (ox A ) and B are two peptides originally discovered in neurons of rat hypothalamus, and later found in different cellular types of the gastrointestinal and genital tracts. They arise from the proteolytic cleavage of a common precursor molecule, prepro‐orexin, and bind to two receptors, namely receptor 1 (ox1r) and receptor 2 for orexins, that show different binding affinity. The central role of the two peptides has been extensively studied, whereas their activity in the periphery is still poorly known. Here, we investigated the presence of ox A and ox1r in the epididymis of a S outh A merican camelid species, the alpaca, by immunohistochemistry, and we also assessed the expression of prepro‐orexin and ox1r in tissue extracts by W estern blotting analysis. Ox A ‐ and ox1r‐immunoreactivity was found in the cytoplasm of principal cells of the caput epididymis. A prevalent supranuclear localization of granular‐shaped positive material was observed. No positivity was present in the other cytotypes of epididymis. The expression of two peptides with molecular weight corresponding to those of prepro‐orexin and ox1r, respectively, was detected in the tissue extracts from the organ.