Recent studies support roles for neurokinin-1 (NK-1) and gastrin-releasing peptide (GRP) receptor-expressing spinal neurons in itch. We presently investigated expression of substance P (SP) and GRP in pruritogen-responsive primary sensory neurons and roles for these neuropeptides in itch signaling. Responses of dorsal root ganglion (DRG) cells to various pruritogens were observed by calcium ima...

The main mammalian circadian pacemaker is located in the suprachiasmatic nuclei (SCN) of the hypothalamus. Gastrin-releasing peptide (GRP) and its receptor (BB(2)) are synthesized by rodent SCN neurons, but the role of GRP in circadian rhythm processes is unknown. In this study, we examined the phase-resetting actions of GRP on the electrical activity rhythms of hamster and rat SCN neurons in v...

The existence of bombesin/gastrin-releasing peptide-like immunoreactivity (BN-GRP-LI) in rat sensory ganglia and spinal cord was confirmed using immunocytochemistry, gel filtration chromatography, and high performance liquid chromatography combined with radioimmunoassay. Immunohistochemical studies showed that in the spinal sensory ganglia of the rat about 5% of the neurons exhibited BN-GRP-LI,...

Human small cell lung cancers (SCLC) produce and secrete the regulatory peptide bombesin (BN) or its mammalian counterpart gastrinreleasing peptide (GRP). In addition, several SCLC tumor lines have been shown to express high affinity receptors for BN/GRP. On the basis of these findings, we investigated the effect of exogenously added BN and GRP on the soft agarose colony growth of a panel of hu...

Human small cell lung cancers (SCLC) produce and secrete the regulatory peptide bombesin (BN) or its mammalian counterpart gastrin-releasing peptide (GRP). In addition, several SCLC tumor lines have been shown to express high affinity receptors for BN/GRP. On the basis of these findings, we investigated the effect of exogenously added BN and GRP on the soft agarose colony growth of a panel of h...

Cell-cycle checkpoints are signal-transduction pathways required to maintain genomic stability in dividing cells. Previously, it was reported that two kinases essential for checkpoint signalling, Chk1 and Chk2 are structurally conserved. In contrast to yeast, Xenopus and mammals, the Chk1- and Chk2-dependent pathways in Drosophila are not understood in detail. Here, we report the function of th...

Previous studies demonstrated that the elevated expression and receptor binding of gastrin-releasing peptide (GRP) in various types of cancer suggest that GRP might be a putative target for immunotherapy in neoplastic diseases. DNA vaccine for hormone/growth factor immune deprivation represents a feasible and attractive approach for cancer treatment; nevertheless, there is still a need to incre...

Glial-restricted precursor (GRP) cells are among a number of candidate cells for transplantation repair of CNS injury. The isolation and characterization of these cells in vitro have been described previously, but their in vivo properties are not well understood. We examined the fate and migration of grafted fetal GRP cells harvested from alkaline phosphatase-expressing transgenic rats into int...

Using high resolution centrifugal density-gradient separation of cytoplasmic extracts of guinea pig myenteric plexus and Torpedo electric tissue, we have succeeded in isolating fractions of storage particles rich in gastrin-releasing peptide (GRP). In extracts of myenteric plexus and gradients derived therefrom, the 10-amino acid GRP peptide (GRP-10) was the sole form present; this was bimodall...

Reproductive genes and traits evolve rapidly in many organisms, including mollusks, algae, and primates. Previously we demonstrated that a family of glycine-rich pollen surface proteins (GRPs) from Arabidopsis thaliana and Brassica oleracea had diverged substantially, making identification of homologous genes impossible despite a separation of only 20 million years. Here we address the molecula...