Calcitonin gene expression in normal human liver

• Published in: FEBS letters Vol. 331; no. 1; pp. 15 - 18
• Main Authors: Bracq, S., Machairas, M., Clement, B., Pidoux, E., Andreoletti, M., Moukhtar, M.S., Jullienne, A.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Amsterdam Elsevier B.V 27.09.1993; Elsevier
• Subjects: Amino Acid Sequence; Autocrine; Base Sequence; Biological and medical sciences; Biosynthesis; BSA, bovine serum albumin; Calcitonin - genetics; Calcitonin mRNA (human liver); Cells, Cultured; CT, calcitonin; DNA, Complementary; Fundamental and applied biological sciences. Psychology; Gene Expression; Genes. Genome; hCT, human calcitonin; Humans; Liver - cytology; Liver - metabolism; Molecular and cellular biology; Molecular genetics; Molecular Sequence Data; Paracrine; PCR; PCR, polymerase chain reaction; Polymerase Chain Reaction; Radioimmunoassay; Rnase, ribonuclease A; SSC, sodium saline citrate; CT, calcitonin; Calcitonin mRNA (human liver); BSA, bovine serum albumin; Paracrine; PCR, polymerase chain reaction; Biosynthesis; hCT, human calcitonin; Autocrine; PCR; SSC, sodium saline citrate; Rnase, ribonuclease A; Human; Hepatocyte; Nucleotide sequence; Calcitonin; Liver; Peptide hormone; Primary culture; Gene organization; Gene expression; Neuropeptide; Aminoacid sequence
• ISSN: 0014-5793; 1873-3468
• DOI: 10.1016/0014-5793(93)80288-6

Immunoreactive calcitonin (CT) is present in liver. This could represent hormone synthesized by liver cells, degraded or bound to specific receptors reported in this organ. We report here that the calcitonin gene is expressed in liver. We proved this by demonstrating, by PCR amplification using specific primers, the presence of calcitonin messenger in human liver and in primary cultures of human hepatocytes and detected by radioimmunoassay CT in hepatic tissues and cells. The synthesis of hormone by liver that also possesses specific receptors for CT favors the presence of an autocrine or paracrine system involving calcitonin in this organ.