Chromogranin A is present in and released by fish endocrine tissue

Chromogranin A (CgA) is a protein that is present in many mammalian endocrine cells and co-secreted with their resident hormones. We have demonstrated the presence of CgA by immunohistology in the ultimobranchial glands and corpuscles of Stannius of rainbow trout. CgA was also detected by radioimmunoassay in the medium of incubated coho salmon ultimobranchial glands. Our observations demonstrate the presence of CgA in endocrine glands of evolutionarily divergent species. These observations are consistent with the hypothesis that CgA participates in the secretory process of a wide variety of hormones.