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Structure and pharmacological actions of phyllocaerulein, a caerulein‐like nonapeptide: its occurrence in extracts of the skin of Phyllomedusa sauvagei and related Phyllomedusa species
Author(s) -
ANASTASI A.,
BERTACCINI G.,
CEI J. M.,
CARO G.,
ERSPAMER V.,
IMPICCIATORE M.
Publication year - 1969
Publication title -
british journal of pharmacology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 2.432
H-Index - 211
eISSN - 1476-5381
pISSN - 0007-1188
DOI - 10.1111/j.1476-5381.1969.tb09538.x
Subject(s) - amphibian , peptide , residue (chemistry) , biochemistry , chemistry , amino acid , frog skin , hydrolysis , biology , ecology , organic chemistry , sodium
1 . The South American amphibian Phyllomedusa sauvagei contains in its skin large amounts of a polypeptide closely resembling caerulein in its pharmacological actions. This polypeptide, called phyllocaerulein, was obtained in a pure form, and upon acid hydrolysis, enzymic digestion and end‐group determination experiments it proved to be a nonapeptide of the following composition Pyr‐Glu‐Tyr(SO 3 H)‐Thr‐Gly‐Trp‐Met‐Asp‐Phe‐NH 2 It may be seen that caerulein and phyllocaerulein have in common the C‐terminal heptapeptide and the N‐terminal pyroglutamyl residue. 2 . Phyllocaerulein is indistinguishable from caerulein even in parallel bio‐assay. However, the former polypeptide seems to be somewhat more potent than the latter on all the preparations tested. 3 . In different batches of Phyllomedusa sauvagei skin the phyllocaerulein content ranged between 150 and 600 μg/g of fresh tissue. Phyllocaerulein or similar polypeptides occur also in the skin of several other Phyllomedusa species, among which are Phyll. burmeisteri, Phyll. dachnicolor, Phyll, helenae, Phyll. annae, Phyll. callidryas and Phyll. bicolor . 4 . The qualitative identification and quantitative estimation of caerulein‐like polypeptides in crude skin extracts may be complicated by the concomitant occurrence of other active polypeptides. These, however, are poorly effective on some test preparations which seem to respond selectively to caerulein. 5 . Like that of caerulein, the biological significance of phyllocaerulein is completely obscure.