The endogenous opioid system has been reported to participate in nicotine behavioural responses. The aim of the study was to determine the contribution of the endogenous peptides derived from prodynorphin in acute and chronic nicotine responses, mainly those related to its addictive properties. Locomotion and nociception were evaluated after acute nicotine administration in prodynorphin knockou...

Peptides derived from both proenkephalin and prodynorphin have been identified in guinea pig adrenal medulla. In extracts of whole adrenal glands radioimmunoassays directed to the prodynorphin-derived peptides alpha-neoendorphin, dynorphin A, and dynorphin B detected high concentrations of immunoreactive material ranging from 113 to 216 pmol/gm. The concentrations measured by radioimmunoassays ...

The effects of long-term administration of opioid agonists on the regulation of prodynorphin gene expression in rat brain were investigated. Chronic intracerebroventricular treatment with the synthetic opioid agonist acting on the kappa receptor, U-50,488H, and the classic mu agonist morphine markedly decreased prodynorphin mRNA levels in hypothalamus, hippocampus and striatum of tolerant rats....

Dynorphin neuropeptides are believed to act as endogenous anticonvulsants, though direct evidence for such a role in humans is sparse. We now report pronounced increases of prodynorphin mRNA expression in the dentate gyrus of patients with temporal lobe epilepsy in comparison to controls. We detected a conspicuously right skewed, bimodal distribution of mRNA levels among patients, suggestive of...

Since several years dynorphin, a member of the opioid peptide family, was suggested to play a regulatory role in numerous functional pathways of the brain. In line with its localization in hippocampus, amygdala, hypothalamus and striatum these functions resemble learning and memory, emotional control and stress response. Male prodynorphin-deficient (Dyn KO) mice display an anxiolytic phenotype ...

In humans, remifentanil anesthesia enhances nociceptive sensitization in the postoperative period. We hypothesized that activation of extracellular signal-regulated kinases 1 and 2 (ERK1/2) and the expression of c-Fos, prodynorphin (mRNA), and dynorphin in the spinal cord could participate in the molecular mechanisms underlying postoperative opioid-induced sensitization. In a mouse model of inc...

This review discusses the accumulated evidence that pro-opiomelanocortin (POMC) gene products as well other pituitary neuropeptides derived from related genes (Proenkephalin, PENK; Prodynorphin, PDYN, and Pronociceptin, PNOC) can exert direct effects on B lymphocytes to modulate their functions. We also available data receptor systems might be involved in transmission of such hormonal signals c...