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. 1974 Jun;139(3):593–602. doi: 10.1042/bj1390593

Adrenocorticotrophic and melanocyte-stimulating peptides in the human pituitary

Alexander P Scott 1, Philip J Lowry 1,*
PMCID: PMC1166323  PMID: 4368382

Abstract

The adrenocorticotrophic and melanocyte-stimulating peptides of the human pituitary were investigated by means of radioimmunoassay, bioassay and physicochemical procedures. Substantial amounts of adrenocorticotrophin and a peptide resembling β-lipotrophin were identified in pituitary extracts, but α-melanocyte-stimulating hormone, β-melanocyte-stimulating hormone and corticotrophin-like intermediate lobe peptide, which have been identified in the pars intermedia of pituitaries from other vertebrates, were not found. The absence of β-melanocyte-stimulating hormone appears to contradict previous chemical and radioimmunological studies. Our results suggest, however, that it is not a natural pituitary peptide but an artefact formed by enzymic degradation of β-lipotrophin during extraction.

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Selected References

These references are in PubMed. This may not be the complete list of references from this article.

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