Sequence analysis of a growth hormone releasing factor from a human pancreatic islet tumor

A growth hormone releasing factor of a human pancreatic islet tumor (hpGRF) of an acromegalic patient was purified and subjected to Edman degradation in a spinning cup sequencer. Approximately 0.7-1.2 nmol of peptide was applied to the cup without any pretreatment, after coupling to 3-sulfophenyl isothiocyanate or after cleavage with cyanogen bromide, staphylococcal protease, or trypsin. On the basis of the analytical data, the N-terminal sequence of 39 residues is established to be H-Tyr-Ala-Asp-Ala-Ile-Phe-Thr-Asn- Ser-Tyr-Arg-Lys-Val-Leu-Gly-Gln-Leu-Ser-Ala-Arg-Lys- Leu-Leu-Gln-Asp-Ile-Met-Ser-Arg-Gln-Gln-Gly-Glu-Ser- Asn-Gln-Glu-Arg-Gly-. It is proposed that alanine is residue 40 and represents (as free acid) the C terminus of hpGRF. Synthetic hpGRF(1-40)-OH is highly potent in stimulating GH secretion from the rat anterior pituitary in vitro and in vivo. The C-terminal sequence of hpGRF does not appear to contribute significantly to the biologic intrinsic activity and potency of hpGRF, as demonstrated by the fact that the natural product and the synthetic peptides hpGRF(1-40)-OH, hpGRF(1-40)-NH2, and hpGRF(1-29)-NH2 show equivalent in vitro activities. On the basis of sequence homologies, hpGRF is closely related to members of the glucagon secretin family, especially to the porcine gut peptide PHI.