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Presence of Kisspeptin-like Immunoreactivity in Human Adrenal Glands and Adrenal Tumors

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Abstract

Kisspeptins are neuropeptides which activate the hypothalamo-pituitary gonadal axis and are considered to play important physiological roles in the reproduction. Kisspeptins have also been reported to stimulate the aldosterone secretion from the adrenal cortex. However, the expression of kisspeptins in human adrenal glands and adrenal tumors has not been clarified yet. We, therefore, studied the presence of kisspeptin-like immunoreactivity (LI) in human adrenal glands and adrenal tumors (adrenocortical adenomas, adrenocortical carcinomas, and pheochromocytomas) by radioimmunoassay and immunocytochemistry. Kisspeptin-LI was detected in all the tissues examined; normal portions of adrenal glands (3.0 ± 2.3 pmol/g wet weight, n = 21, mean ± SD), aldosterone-producing adenomas (4.6 ± 3.3 pmol/g wet weight, n = 10), cortisol-producing adenomas (2.7 ± 1.4 pmol/g wet weight, n = 14), adrenocortical carcinomas (1.7 ± 0.2 pmol/g wet weight, n = 4), and pheochromocytomas (1.8 ± 0.8 pmol/g wet weight, n = 6). There was no significant difference in kisspeptin-LI levels among them. Immunocytochemistry showed positive kisspeptin-immunostaining in normal adrenal glands, with stronger immunostaining found in the medulla. Furthermore, positive kisspeptin-immunostaining was found in all types of adrenal tumors examined; adrenocortical adenomas, adrenocortical carcinomas, and pheochromocytomas. The intensity of kisspeptin-immunostaining in these adrenal tumors was, however, not so strong as that in normal adrenal medulla. The present study has shown for the first time the presence of kisspeptin-LI in adrenal glands and adrenal tumors.

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Acknowledgments

This work was supported partly by The Salt Science Research Foundation, No. 0910, and by Grant-in-aids for Scientific Research from the Ministry of Education, Science, Sports and Culture of Japan.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Endocrinology and Applied Medical Science, Tohoku University Graduate School of Medicine, 2-1 Seiryo-machi, Aoba-ku, Sendai, Miyagi, 980-8575, Japan

    Kazuhiro Takahashi, Itaru Shoji, Akiko Shibasaki, Ichiro Kato, Keisuke Hiraishi, Hajime Yamamoto & Kiriko Kaneko

  2. Division of Nephrology, Endocrinology, and Vascular Medicine, Department of Medicine, Tohoku University Graduate School of Medicine, Sendai, 980-8574, Japan

    Osamu Murakami, Ryo Morimoto, Fumitoshi Satoh & Sadayoshi Ito

  3. Department of Clinical Pharmacology and Therapeutics, Tohoku University Graduate School of Pharmaceutical Sciences and Medicine, Sendai, Miyagi, 980-8574, Japan

    Kazuhito Totsune

  4. Takeda General Hospital, Aizu-Wakamatsu, 965-8585, Japan

    Hajime Yamamoto

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  1. Kazuhiro Takahashi
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  2. Itaru Shoji
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  3. Akiko Shibasaki
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  7. Kiriko Kaneko
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  8. Osamu Murakami
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  9. Ryo Morimoto
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  10. Fumitoshi Satoh
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  11. Sadayoshi Ito
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  12. Kazuhito Totsune
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Correspondence to Kazuhiro Takahashi.

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Takahashi, K., Shoji, I., Shibasaki, A. et al. Presence of Kisspeptin-like Immunoreactivity in Human Adrenal Glands and Adrenal Tumors. J Mol Neurosci 41, 138–144 (2010). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12031-009-9306-4

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12031-009-9306-4

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