scholarly journals Joint pituitary-hypothalamic and intrahypothalamic autofeedback construct of pulsatile growth hormone secretion

2003 ◽  
Vol 285 (5) ◽  
pp. R1240-R1249 ◽  
Author(s):  
Leon S. Farhy ◽  
Johannes D. Veldhuis

Growth hormone (GH) secretion is vividly pulsatile in all mammalian species studied. In a simplified model, self-renewable GH pulsatility can be reproduced by assuming individual, reversible, time-delayed, and threshold-sensitive hypothalamic outflow of GH-releasing hormone (GHRH) and GH release-inhibiting hormone (somatostatin; SRIF). However, this basic concept fails to explicate an array of new experimental observations. Accordingly, here we formulate and implement a novel fourfold ensemble construct, wherein 1) systemic GH pulses stimulate long-latency, concentration-dependent secretion of periventricular-nuclear SRIF, thereby initially quenching and then releasing multiphasic GH volleys (recurrent every 3-3.5 h); 2) SRIF delivered to the anterior pituitary gland competitively antagonizes exocytotic release, but not synthesis, of GH during intervolley intervals; 3) arcuate-nucleus GHRH pulses drive the synthesis and accumulation of GH in saturable somatotrope stores; and 4) a purely intrahypothalamic mechanism sustains high-frequency GH pulses (intervals of 30-60 min) within a volley, assuming short-latency reciprocal coupling between GHRH and SRIF neurons (stimulatory direction) and SRIF and GHRH neurons (inhibitory direction). This two-oscillator formulation explicates (but does not prove) 1) the GHRH-sensitizing action of prior SRIF exposure; 2) a three-site (intrahypothalamic, hypothalamo-pituitary, and somatotrope GH store dependent) mechanism driving rebound-like GH secretion after SRIF withdrawal in the male; 3) an obligatory role for pituitary GH stores in representing rebound GH release in the female; 4) greater irregularity of SRIF than GH release profiles; and 5) a basis for the paradoxical GH-inhibiting action of centrally delivered GHRH.

1984 ◽  
Vol 103 (3) ◽  
pp. 327-332 ◽  
Author(s):  
J. Rabii ◽  
L. Knapp ◽  
A. De La Guardia ◽  
P. Zafian ◽  
T. J. Lauterio ◽  
...  

ABSTRACT To study brain sites involved in the regulation of GH secretion in the domestic fowl, lesions were placed in and around the hypothalamus of 1-week-old cockerels. Circulating concentrations of GH were then measured at weekly intervals for 4 weeks after the placement of lesions. At the termination of the experiment, histological procedures were used to determine the exact site of the lesion in each bird. Although a fair degree of overlap existed between the lesion sites leading to stimulation and those causing an inhibition of GH secretion, a clear distinction could be made in the overall distribution of stimulatory and inhibitory sites of GH control. A high concentration of lesion sites resulting in GH decline (presumed GH-releasing factor-rich areas) appeared to reside in the general area of the ventromedial and the arcuate nucleus of the hypothalamus. Lesion sites causing a GH rise (presumed somatostatin-rich areas), on the other hand, seemed to have a more caudal distribution. In addition, some evidence of an anterior hypothalamic distribution of these presumed 'somatostatin' neurones was observed. These agree with the existing immunohistochemical data on the distribution of somatostatin and constitute experimental evidence for localization of presumed GH-releasing factor sites within the avian brain. J. Endocr. (1984) 103, 327–332


1984 ◽  
Vol 4 (12) ◽  
pp. 995-1000 ◽  
Author(s):  
Janet E. Merritt ◽  
Pauline R. M. Dobson ◽  
Richard J. H. Wojcikiewicz ◽  
John G. Baird ◽  
Barry L. Brown

A possible role for Ca 2+ and calmodulin in the action of growth-hormone-releasing factor (GHRF) was investigated. Low extracellular Ca2+ (<100 μM), methoxyverapamil, flunarizine, cinnarizine, and Co2+ decreased both basal and GHRF-stimulated growth-hormone secretion, but did not totally inhibit GHRF-stimulation secretion. A calmodulin antagonist, W7, abolished GHRF-stimulated GH secretion, with no effect on basal secretion. It is suggested that GHRF may act primarily by elevating cellular cyclic AMP, which may then modulate calcium mobilization or flux; the increased intracellular Ca2+ concentrations may then activate calmodulin.


1995 ◽  
Vol 144 (1) ◽  
pp. 83-90 ◽  
Author(s):  
E Magnan ◽  
L Mazzocchi ◽  
M Cataldi ◽  
V Guillaume ◽  
A Dutour ◽  
...  

Abstract The physiological role of endogenous circulating GHreleasing hormone (GHRH) and somatostatin (SRIH) on spontaneous pulsatile and neostigmine-induced secretion of GH was investigated in adult rams actively immunized against each neuropeptide. All animals developed antibodies at concentrations sufficient for immunoneutralization of GHRH and SRIH levels in hypophysial portal blood. In the anti GHRH group, plasma GH levels were very low; the amplitude of GH pulses was strikingly reduced, although their number was unchanged. No stimulation of GH release was observed after neostigmine administration. The reduction of GH secretion was associated with a decreased body weight and a significant reduction in plasma IGF-I concentration. In the antiSRIH group, no changes in basal and pulsatile GH secretion or the GH response to neostigmine were observed as compared to controls. Body weight was not significantly altered and plasma IGF-I levels were reduced in these animals. These results suggest that in sheep, circulating SRIH (in the systemic and hypophysial portal vasculature) does not play a significant role in pulsatile and neostigmine-induced secretion of GH. The mechanisms of its influence on body weight and production of IGF-I remain to be determined. Journal of Endocrinology (1995) 144, 83–90


1980 ◽  
Vol 93 (2) ◽  
pp. 134-138 ◽  
Author(s):  
M. Donnadieu ◽  
R. M. Schimpff ◽  
P. Garnier ◽  
J. L. Chaussain ◽  
J. C. Job

Abstract. Since transferrin (Tf) in vitro has a growth-promoting activity and is associated with NSILA properties, the aim of this work was to study in vivo the relationships between Tf, somatomedin activity (SM), growth hormone (GH) secretion, and height velocity in children. An iv infusion of ornithine hydrochloride was given to 23 controls; the induced rise of GH was accompanied by a simultaneous fall of SM (r = −0.711, P < 0.001) and was preceded by a fall of Tf (r = −0.610, P < 0.01). In 17 obese children SM was within the normal range, when Tf levels were higher and arginineinduced GH peaks lower than in the controls, and a negative correlation was found between Tf basal levels and GH peaks (r = −0.608, P < 0.01). In 9 children with confirmed hypopituitarism the Tf levels were significantly lower than in the controls. In 14 children with confirmed or suspected hypopituitarism a single im injection of hGH (6 mg) failed to induce Tf variations over 24 h. In 39 of these children the height velocity was significantly correlated with Tf basal levels (r = 0.701, P < 0.001). These data suggest that transferrin is involved in growth regulation, and that GH secretion is related to transferrin levels by a feed-back mechanism.


1987 ◽  
Vol 114 (4) ◽  
pp. 465-469 ◽  
Author(s):  
Gian Paolo Ceda ◽  
Robert G. Davis ◽  
Andrew R. Hoffman

Abstract. Glucocorticoids have been shown to have both stimulatory and suppressive effects on GH secretion in vitro and in vivo. In order to study the kinetics of glucocorticoid action on the somatotrope, cultured rat pituitary cells were exposed to dexamethasone for varying periods of time. During short-term incubations (≤ 4 h), dexamethasone inhibited GHRH and forskolin-elicited GH secretion, but during longer incubation periods, the glucocorticoid enhanced both basal and GHRH-stimulated GH release. The inhibitory effect of brief dexamethasone exposure was also seen in cells which previously had been exposed to dexamethasone. In addition, growth hormone secretion from cultured rat and human somatotropinoma cells was inhibited by a brief exposure to dexamethasone. Thus, the nature of glucocorticoid action on the isolated cultured somatotrope is biphasic, with brief exposure inhibiting, and more prolonged exposure stimulating GH secretion.


2011 ◽  
Vol 29 (36) ◽  
pp. 4776-4780 ◽  
Author(s):  
Thomas E. Merchant ◽  
Susan R. Rose ◽  
Christina Bosley ◽  
Shengjie Wu ◽  
Xiaoping Xiong ◽  
...  

Purpose Growth hormone deficiency (GHD) after radiation therapy negatively affects growth and development and quality of life in children with brain tumors. Patients and Materials Between 1997 and 2008, 192 pediatric patients with localized primary brain tumors (ependymoma, n = 88; low-grade glioma, n = 51; craniopharyngioma, n = 28; high-grade glioma, n = 23; and other tumor types, n = 2) underwent provocative testing of GH secretion by using the secretogogues arginine and l-dopa before and after (6, 12, 36, and 60 months) conformal radiation therapy (CRT). A total of 664 arginine/l-dopa test procedures were performed. Results Baseline testing revealed preirradiation GHD in 22.9% of tested patients. On the basis of data from 118 patients, peak GH was modeled as an exponential function of time after CRT and mean radiation dose to the hypothalamus. The average patient was predicted to develop GHD with the following combinations of the time after CRT and mean dose to the hypothalamus: 12 months and more than 60 Gy; 36 months and 25 to 30 Gy; and 60 months and 15 to 20 Gy. A cumulative dose of 16.1 Gy to the hypothalamus would be considered the mean radiation dose required to achieve a 50% risk of GHD at 5 years (TD50/5). Conclusion GH secretion after CRT can be predicted on the basis of dose and time after irradiation in pediatric patients with localized brain tumors. These findings provide an objective radiation dose constraint for the hypothalamus.


2000 ◽  
Vol 25 (2) ◽  
pp. 157-168 ◽  
Author(s):  
M Montero ◽  
L Yon ◽  
S Kikuyama ◽  
S Dufour ◽  
H Vaudry

Growth hormone-releasing hormone (GHRH) and pituitary adenylate cyclase-activating polypeptide (PACAP) belong to the same superfamily of regulatory neuropeptides and have both been characterized on the basis of their hypophysiotropic activities. This review describes the molecular evolution of the GHRH/PACAP gene family from urochordates to mammals and presents the hypothesis that the respective roles of GHRH and PACAP in the control of GH secretion are totally inverted in phylogenetically distant groups of vertebrates. In mammals, GHRH and PACAP originate from distinct precursors whereas, in all submammalian taxa investigated so far, including birds, amphibians and fish, a single precursor encompasses a GHRH-like peptide and PACAP. In mammals, GHRH-containing neurons are confined to the infundibular and dorsomedial nuclei of the hypothalamus while PACAP-producing neurons are widely distributed in hypothalamic and extrahypothalamic areas. In fish, both GHRH- and PACAP-immunoreactive neurons are restricted to the diencephalon and directly innervate the adenohypophysis. In mammals and birds, GHRH plays a predominant role in the control of GH secretion. In amphibians, both GHRH and PACAP are potent stimulators of GH release. In fish, PACAP strongly activates GH release whereas GHRH has little or no effect on GH secretion. The GHRH/PACAP family of peptides thus provides a unique model in which to investigate the structural and functional facets of evolution.


2007 ◽  
Vol 292 (6) ◽  
pp. E1750-E1762 ◽  
Author(s):  
Xinyan Wang ◽  
Mable M. S. Chu ◽  
Anderson O. L. Wong

Pituitary adenylate cyclase-activating polypeptide (PACAP) is a potent growth hormone (GH)-releasing factor in lower vertebrates. However, its functional interactions with other GH regulators have not been fully characterized. In fish models, norepinephrine (NE) inhibits GH release at the pituitary cell level, but its effects on GH synthesis have yet to be determined. We examined adrenergic inhibition of PACAP-induced GH secretion and GH gene expression using grass carp pituitary cells as a cell model. Through activation of pituitary α2-adrenoreceptors, NE or the α2-agonist clonidine reduced both basal and PACAP-induced GH release and GH mRNA expression. In carp pituitary cells, clonidine also suppressed cAMP production and intracellular Ca2+ levels and blocked PACAP induction of these two second messenger signals. In GH3 cells transfected with a reporter carrying the grass carp GH promoter, PACAP stimulation increased GH promoter activity, and this stimulatory effect could be abolished by NE treatment. In parallel experiments, clonidine reduced GH primary transcript and GH promoter activity without affecting GH mRNA stability, and these inhibitory actions were mimicked by inhibiting adenylate cyclase (AC), blocking protein kinase A (PKA), removing extracellular Ca2+ in the culture medium, or inactivating L-type voltage-sensitive Ca2+ channels (VSCC). Since our recent studies have shown that PACAP can induce GH secretion in carp pituitary cells through cAMP/PKA- and Ca2+/calmodulin-dependent mechanisms, these results, taken together, suggest that α2-adrenergic stimulation in the carp pituitary may inhibit PACAP-induced GH release and GH gene transcription by blocking the AC/cAMP/PKA pathway and Ca2+ entry through L-type VSCC.


1987 ◽  
Vol 115 (1) ◽  
pp. 149-154 ◽  
Author(s):  
Eric F. Adams ◽  
Maria S. Venetikou ◽  
Christine A. Woods ◽  
S. Lacoumenta ◽  
J. M. Burrin

Abstract. Neuropeptide Y (NPY) is a 36 amino acid peptide, widely distributed throughout the brain and is found in hypothalamic neurones. This latter finding suggests that NPY may possess a hypophysiotropic function. A number of studies have demonstrated effects of NPY on LH and GH secretion by rat pituitary cells. We report here the results of experiments investigating the effects of NPY on GH secretion by tumorous human somatotropic pituitary cells in culture. NPY (0.25–25 nmol/l) inhibited GH secretion by 20–53%, the maximal effect depending upon the tumour studied. The potency of NPY was less than that of somatostatin (SRIH). The stimulatory effects of growth hormone releasing factor (GHRH) and theophylline were reduced by NPY, but NPY did not modify the inhibitory effect of SRIH on GH secretion. It is concluded that NPY may be involved in the control of GH secretion, at least by tumorous human pituitary somatotropes.


1990 ◽  
Vol 124 (3) ◽  
pp. 371-380 ◽  
Author(s):  
B. Gabrielsson ◽  
K. M. Fairhall ◽  
I. C. A. F. Robinson

ABSTRACT The guinea-pig is unusual in that it continues to grow at a normal rate after hypophysectomy. Although its pituitary gland appears to contain a GH, this has not been isolated or characterized, and nothing is known about its secretion or physiological control. We have identified guinea-pig GH, established a sensitive heterologous radioimmunoassay and adapted our automatic blood microsampling method to study spontaneous GH secretion in this species. In male guinea-pigs, GH is released in an episodic pattern, reminiscent of the rat. Large multicomponent pulses of GH secretion occur every 3–4 h between periods of low or undetectable GH release, whereas most females showed a more uniform pulsatile pattern with pulses every 1–2 h. GH was released in response to GH-releasing factor (GRF) injections (2, 10 or 20 μg [Nle27]-GRF(1–29)NH2) in a dose-dependent fashion, and i.v. infusion of somatostatin (50 μg/h) blocked spontaneous GH pulses, eliciting a rebound release (from 2·0±0·8 (s.e.m.) to 36±17 μg/l 30 min after stopping the infusion). Infusions of a GH-releasing hexapeptide (100 or 400 μg/h for 4 h) also released GH. These results provide the first description of the pattern of GH release in the guinea-pig, and suggest that the striking episodic pattern is controlled by the same hypothalamic peptides that regulate GH in other species. Since the guinea-pig grows well in the absence of GH, this species may use GH for its metabolic, rather than growth-promoting actions. The guinea-pig may well prove a useful model, now that methods are available for studying its endogenous GH secretion. Journal of Endocrinology (1990) 124, 371–380


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