This Article Full Text Full Text (PDF) Purchase Article View Shopping Cart Alert me when this article is cited Alert me if a correction is posted Citation Map Services Email this article to a friend Similar articles in this journal Similar articles in PubMed Alert me to new issues of the journal Download to citation manager Request Copyright Permission Citing Articles Citing Articles via Google Scholar Google Scholar Articles by Hinson, J. P. Articles by Smith, D. M. Search for Related Content PubMed PubMed Citation Articles by Hinson, J. P. Articles by Smith, D. M.

Adrenomedullin, a Multifunctional Regulatory Peptide¹

Department of Molecular and Cellular Biology (J.P.H.) and Clinical Sciences Research Centre (S.K.), St. Bartholomew’s and the Royal London School of Medicine and Dentistry, Queen Mary and Westfield College, University of London, London E1 4NS; and Department of Metabolic Medicine (D.M.S.), Division of Investigative Sciences, Imperial College School of Medicine, Hammersmith Hospital, London W12 0NN United Kingdom

Since the discovery of adrenomedullin in 1993 several hundred papers have been published regarding the regulation of its secretion and the multiplicity of its actions. It has been shown to be an almost ubiquitous peptide, with the number of tissues and cell types synthesizing adrenomedullin far exceeding those that do not. In Section II of this paper we give a comprehensive review both of tissues and cell lines secreting adrenomedullin and of the mechanisms regulating gene expression. The data on circulating adrenomedullin, obtained with the various assays available, are also reviewed, and the disease states in which plasma adrenomedullin is elevated are listed. In Section III the pharmacology and biochemistry of adrenomedullin binding sites, both specific sites and calcitonin gene-related peptide (CGRP) receptors, are discussed. In particular, the putative adrenomedullin receptor clones and signal transduction pathways are described. In Section IV the various actions of adrenomedullin are discussed: its actions on cellular growth, the cardiovascular system, the central nervous system, and the endocrine system are all considered. Finally, in Section V, we consider some unresolved issues and propose future areas for research.