OBJECTIVE The cholecystokinin(2)-receptor (CCK(2)R) promotes secretion and cell growth induced by its ligands cholecystokinin (CCK) and gastrin. The receptor has recently been shown to be expressed in human medullary thyroid carcinomas (MTCs). The objective of this study was to analyze CCK(2)R expression in MTC samples of different tumor stages as well as in non-malignant thyroid tissues. DES...

Objectives Cholecystokinin (CCK) has been proposed as a mediator in stress. However, it is still not fully documented what are its effects. We aimed to evaluate the effects of systemic administration of CCK exactly before induction of stress on spatial memory and synaptic plasticity at CA1 in rats. Materials and Methods Male Wistar rats were divided into 4 groups: the control, the control-CCK...

Cholecystokinin octapeptide (CCK-8), a gut-brain peptide, regulates a variety of physiological behavioral processes. Previously, we reported that exogenous CCK-8 attenuated morphine-induced conditioned place preference, but the possible effects of CCK-8 on aversively motivated drug seeking remained unclear. To investigate the effects of endogenous and exogenous CCK on negative components of mor...

Cholecystokinin (CCK) was discovered in 1928 in jejunal extracts as a gallbladder contraction factor. It was later shown to be member of a peptide family, which are all ligands for the CCK1 and CCK2 receptors. CCK peptides are known to be synthetized in small intestinal endocrine I-cells and cerebral neurons. But in addition, CCK is expressed in several endocrine glands (pituitary cells, thyroi...

A sensitive and specific radioimmunoassay for cholecystokinin-pancreozymin (CCK-PZ) has been developed, using rabbit antisera to crude porcine hormone. Highly purified porcine CCK-PZ, labelled with (131)I, and repurified by column chromatography on Sephadex G15, was used as tracer. Separation of free from antibody-bound labelled CCK-PZ was carried out using charcoal, ion-exchange resin, or a do...

It has been proposed that the vagus nerve plays a role in mediating cholecystokinin-8 (CCK-8) effect on such gastric functions as motility, emptying and gastric acid secretion. To examine the contribution of the efferent pathways in realizing these effects, efferent mass activity in the ventral gastric vagal nerve in Sprague-Dawley rats was recorded. Intravenous infusion of CCK-8 (0.1-1 nmol) s...

Maternal behavior is regulated by several neurotransmitters, neuropeptides, and hormones. This mini-review focuses on the role of cholecystokinin (CCK), a neuropeptide and gut hormone best known as a satiety signal, in mediating maternal behavior. In addition to the role of CCK in the infant in mother-infant interactions, maternal CCK appears to also be important. We discuss maternal behavior r...

SYNOPSIS. The intestinal hormone, cholecystokinin (CCK), and the stomach hormone, gastrin, form a simple two member family of peptides with much to offer students of hormone and receptor evolution. They share a common carboxyl-terminal tetrapeptide sequence, which is the bioactive site of each peptide and is also antigenic, making heterologous biological and immunological assays feasible. Curre...

Cholecystokinin-octapeptide (CCK-OP) evoked contraction and 3H-acetylcholine (3H-ACh) release of the muscle strip of the guinea pig gallbladder were studied. Although hexamethonium (10(-5) M) or tetrodotoxin (10(-6) M) had no effect on CCK-OP (10(-8) M) evoked contraction and 3H-ACh release, Ca-free medium almost completely abolished CCK-OP (10(-8) M) evoked 3H-ACh release. In Ca-free medium co...

Using sequence-specific radioimmunoassays, the distribution and heterogeneity of cholecystokinin (CCK) has been determined in extracts of tissues from the central nervous system and small intestine of adult man and hog. The CCK determinations were correlated with measurements with a radioimmunoassay specific for the structurally related peptide hormone gastrin. The amount and molecular forms of...