Central and peripheral effects of sculpin pancreatic polypeptide and anglerfish peptide Y in rats

Sculpin pancreatic polypeptide (PP) and anglerfish peptide Y (aPY-amide) are 36-residue peptide amides isolated from the pancreas of the respective species of fish. They are 86% homologous, and exhibit about 65% homology to porcine neuropeptide Y (NPY) and peptide YY (PYY). This homology to mammalian peptides suggests that the fish peptides may constitute a good model system for structure-activity investigations. We therefore synthesized sculpin PP and aPY-amide by the solid phase method and investigated their central and peripheral effects on feeding and blood pressure, respectively. These investigations revealed that both peptides, like NPY, increased blood pressure and induced feeding in rats, presumably by interacting with receptors of NPY. Although there were comparable responses to both peptides on feeding, aPY-amide exhibited a more potent pressor effect than sculpin PP. These observations suggest that the central and peripheral effects of NPY may be mediated by different subclasses of NPY receptors.