title: Endothelin family peptides in human plasma and urine: their molecular forms and concentrations.
abstract: Molecular forms and concentrations of endothelin (ET) family peptides in normal human plasma and urine were investigated using five different sandwich-type enzyme immunoassays (sandwich-EIAs) and reverse-phase high performance liquid chromatography (RP-HPLC). We found that immunoreactive (IR-) big ET-3 and IR-big ET-2 were the major species in both plasma and urine from normal humans. Big ET-2(1-38) was found to be the major form of IR-big ET-2 in plasma. Urinary IR-big ET-2 and plasma and urinary IR-big ET-3 were heterogeneous, and the IR-big ET-3s were larger (M(r) 6,000-12,000) than authentic big ET-3. IR-big ET-1, IR-ET-1, and IR-ET-3 were found at relatively low concentrations in human plasma and urine, and their major forms were identical to authentic big ET-1, ET-1, and ET-3, respectively. Although ET-1 and other ET family peptides have often been measured using RIAs with board-spectrum antibodies, the presence of high concentrations of IR-big ET-2 and IR-big ET-3, but not IR-ET-1, in plasma and urine indicates that the clinical significance of ET family peptides should be investigated with assay methods specific to each ET and big ET.
authors.affiliation: Discovery Research Laboratories I, Takeda Chemical Industries, Ltd., Ibaraki, Japan.
authors.forename: H
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Matsumoto
authors.forename: N
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Suzuki
authors.forename: C
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Kitada
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Fujino
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D002851:Chromatography, High Pressure Liquid; D016232:Endothelins / Q000097:blood* / Q000652:urine*; D006801:Humans; D007124:Immunoenzyme Techniques; D008297:Male; D012016:Reference Values
chemical_list: D016232:Endothelins