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(Hypertension. 2007;49:419.)
© 2007 American Heart Association, Inc.

Brief Reviews

Molecular Biology of the Natriuretic Peptide System

Implications for Physiology and Hypertension

David G. Gardner; Songcang Chen; Denis J. Glenn; Chris L. Grigsby

From the Diabetes Center (S.C., C.L.G.) and Department of Medicine (D.G.G., D.J.G.), University of California at San Francisco.

Correspondence to David G. Gardner, Diabetes Center, 1109 HSW, University of California at San Francisco, San Francisco, CA 94143-0540. E-mail dgardner@diabetes.ucsf.edu

An extract of the first 250 words of the full text is provided, because this article has no abstract.

	Introduction

 
The natriuretic peptides (NPs) are a group of peptide hormones that play important roles in the control of renal, cardiovascular, endocrine, and skeletal homeostasis. Atrial NP (ANP) was first identified as an activity by de Bold et al¹ in 1981. It is a 28 amino acid peptide in humans that assumes a hairpin structure by virtue of a cystine bridge that links residues 7 and 23 (Figure 1). Brain NP (BNP), also known as the B-type NP, is 32 amino acids long in the human. It has a similar hairpin structure but demonstrates considerably more heterogeneity across species than ANP. C-type NP (CNP) is a 22 amino acid peptide that has a truncated carboxy terminus beyond the second cystine residue in the bridge.

View larger version (13K):   Figure 1. Primary structure of human NPs.

ANP and BNP are produced primarily within the muscle cells of the heart. ANP shows a preference for expression in the cardiac atria versus ventricle, whereas BNP is more equivalently expressed throughout the heart. ANP is also expressed in the hypothalamus where it is thought to control blood pressure (BP), sympathetic outflow, vasopressin secretion, drinking behavior, and cardiovascular homeostasis. BNP, on the other hand, is expressed in the brains of only a few species (eg, pig and dog), where its function remains unknown. CNP is expressed in the central nervous system, reproductive tract, bone, and endothelium of blood vessels.

There are 3 different types of NP receptors, and each of them spans the membrane bilayer as a single . . . [Full Text of this Article]

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