K. Takahashi et al., PITUITARY ADENYLATE-CYCLASE ACTIVATING POLYPEPTIDE (PACAP)-LIKE IMMUNOREACTIVITY IN GANGLIONEUROBLASTOMA AND NEUROBLASTOMA, Regulatory peptides, 49(1), 1993, pp. 19-24
Pituitary adenylate cyclase activating polypeptide (PACAP) is a 38 ami
no acid peptide originally isolated from ovine hypothalamus. It has a
potent stimulatory action on adenylate cyclase in the rat pituitary. T
he presence of PACAP was studied in the tumor tissues of ganglioneurob
lastoma and neuroblastoma by radioimmunoassay and immunocytochemistry.
Immunocytochemical studies showed positive immunostaining in 4 out of
7 ganglioneuroblastomas and 4 out of 6 neuroblastomas. Immunoreactive
PACAP concentrations in tissues of 3 gangioneuroblastomas ranged from
14.5 to 27.8 pmol/g wet weight (20.0 +/- 5.7 pmol/g wet weight, mean
+/- S.D.) and the concentration in one neuroblastoma tissue was 111.0
pmol/g wet weight. Reverse phase high performance liquid chromatograph
y of the tumor tissue extract of ganglioneuroblastoma showed a peak el
uting in the position of PACAP1-38 and smaller broad peaks eluting lat
er. These results indicated that high concentrations of immunoreactive
PACAP were present in the tumor tissues of ganglioneuroblastoma and n
euroblastoma, and suggest the possibility that this peptide plays a pa
thophysiological role in some ganglioneuroblastomas and neuroblastomas
.