Characterization of melanotropin-release-inhibiting factor (melanostatin) from frog brain: homology with human neuropeptide Y

A polypeptide was purified from frog brain extracts on the basis of its ability to inhibit alpha-melanotropin release from perifused frog neurointermediate lobes. Based on Edman degradation, amino acid analysis, and peptide mapping, the primary structure of this frog melanotropin-release-inhibiting factor (melanostatin) was determined to be H-Tyr-Pro-Ser-Lys-Pro-Asp-Asn-Pro-Gly-Glu-Asp-Ala-Pro-Ala-Glu-Asp-Met- Ala-Lys-Tyr-Tyr-Ser-Ala-Leu-Arg-His-Tyr-Ile-Asn-Leu-Ile-Thr-Arg-Gln-Arg- Tyr-NH2 . Frog melanostatin belongs to the pancreatic polypeptide/neuropeptide Y/peptide YY family, and the structure of this peptide differs from that of human neuropeptide Y by only one amino acid substitution in position 19. A synthetic replicate of frog melanostatin is coeluted with the native peptide on HPLC and is highly potent in inhibiting alpha-melanotropin secretion in vitro (IC50 = 60 nM).