Relaxin family peptide receptors (RXFP, nomenclature as agreed by the NC-IUPHAR Subcommittee on [18, 81]) may be divided into two pairs, RXFP1/2 and RXFP3/4. Endogenous agonists at these are heterodimeric hormones structurally related to insulin: relaxin-1, relaxin, relaxin-3 (also known INSL7), insulin-like 3 (INSL3) INSL5. Species homologues of relaxin have distinct pharmacology interacts wit...

Relaxin family peptide receptors (RXFP, nomenclature as agreed by the NC-IUPHAR Subcommittee on [23, 119]) may be divided into two pairs, RXFP1/2 and RXFP3/4. Endogenous agonists at these are heterodimeric hormones structurally related to insulin: relaxin-1, relaxin, relaxin-3 (also known INSL7), insulin-like 3 (INSL3) INSL5. Species homologues of relaxin have distinct pharmacology interacts wi...

Relaxin-3 is the most recently discovered member of the relaxin family of peptide hormones. In contrast to relaxin-1 and -2, whose main functions are associated with pregnancy, relaxin-3 is involved in neuropeptide signaling in the brain. Here, we report the solution structure of human relaxin-3, the first structure of a relaxin family member to be solved by NMR methods. Overall, relaxin-3 adop...

Relaxin family peptide 3 receptors (RXFP3) are activated by H3-relaxin to inhibit forskolin-stimulated cAMP accumulation and stimulate extracellular signal-regulated kinase (ERK) 1/2 phosphorylation. In this study, we sought to identify novel signaling pathways coupled to RXFP3 and to investigate whether other members of the relaxin peptide family activated these pathways. Two patterns of signa...

Relaxin has vital physiological roles in pregnant rats, mice, and pigs. Relaxin promotes growth and softening of the cervix, thus facilitating rapid delivery of live young. Relaxin also promotes development of the mammary apparatus, thus enabling normal lactational performance. The actions of relaxin on the mammary apparatus vary among species. Whereas relaxin is required for development of the...

Relaxin is a polypeptide hormone best known for its role in parturition. However, high affinity relaxin receptors have been localized in the rat brain and heart in addition to the uterus. Several lines of evidence also suggest that relaxin may be involved in the regulation of blood pressure, heart rate, and the release of oxytocin and vasopressin. We now show by Northern analysis that a 1-kilob...

UNLABELLED Background- AIMS Little is known about the prognostic significance of elevated serum relaxin in acute myocardial infarction (AMI) patients. The present study is designed to investigate the potential association between serum relaxin levels and the risk of AMI. MATERIALS AND METHODS We measured circulating relaxin levels in 80 patients (median age 62.3 years) who presented with fi...

The insulin superfamily, characterized by common disulphide bonds, includes not only insulin but also insulin-like peptides such as relaxin-1 and relaxin-3. The actions of relaxin-3 are largely unknown, but recent work suggests a role in regulation of food intake. Relaxin-3 mRNA is highly expressed in the nucleus incertus, which has extensive projections to the hypothalamus, and relaxin immunor...

The peptide relaxin has recently been shown to protect brain tissues from the detrimental effects of ischemia. To date, the mechanisms for this remain unclear. In order to investigate the neuroprotective mechanisms by which relaxin may protect the brain, we investigated the possibility that relaxin protects astrocytes from hypoxia or oxygen/glucose deprivation (OGD). Cultured astrocytes were pr...

Relaxin-3, the most recently identified member of relaxin/insulin family, is an agonist for leucine-rich repeat-containing G protein-coupled receptor (LGR)7, GPCR135, and GPCR142. LGR7 can be pharmacologically differentiated from GPCR135 and GPCR142 by its high affinity for relaxin. Selective ligands that specifically activate GPCR135 or GPCR142 are highly desirable for studying their functiona...