The most comprehensive and conceptual one-volume treatment of this field available and the first to emphasize the cellular and molecular aspects of gut peptide biology. Authored by an array of internationally distinguished scientists, it deals with issues of peptide localization and biosynthesis in gastrointestinal cells, mechanisms of peptide release and inactivation and the nature of peptide receptors. The breadth and readability make it an invaluable reference source for scientists in all disciplines interested in any aspect of brain-gut peptides.

J. M. Polak and S. R. Bloom For some time Experientia has published, as a unique feature, interdis ciplinary multi-author reviews, giving a comprehensive overview of sub jects regarded as 'growing edges' of science. The enthusiasm shown by the readers was contagious and thus it was felt necessary to compile a special volume dealing with the novel aspects of regulatory peptides. This book covers some of the growing areas in regulatory peptide research and, although it is based on the original volume of Experientia, it is expanded and updated. The topic of 'regulatory peptides' is relatively young and has grown at an unprecedented pace, from the embryonic conception of 'gut hor mones' or 'brain neuropeptides' some 15 years ago to the realisation that these active pep tides are found, almost without exception, in every part of l8 23 the body in all vertebrate and many invertebrate species • Why the term 'regulatory peptides'? It represents a convenient label encompassing both the active peptides present in nerves, which are re leased as (putative) neurotransmitters, and those in endocrine cells, which act locally or at a distance as circulating hormones, these being the l8 main components of the so-called diffuse neuroendocrine or APUD 17 system • Morphological studies support this physiological viewpoint.

Strictly speaking, the term regulatory peptides may include any peptide which has a regulatory function in any organism. In recent years, how ever, the term has come to mean those originally classified as brain-gut peptides. The peptides initially defined as those belonging to the brain gut axis had a dual location in neurones of the brain and endocrine cells of the gut. We now include a number of neuropeptides found in the autonomic nervous system of the gut, the cardiovascular system and other systems. To many scientists comparative physiology means comparison of the mechanisms of certain functions in the rat, the guinea-pig, the cat and maybe some other mammal. If the philosophy is that man is the centre of the universe and other mammals can be used as 'models' of man, this may well be the most useful way to study the functions of the human being, without actually chopping somebody up. However, with a some what wider perspective on life, it is easy to see the importance of a full understanding of the function of all living organisms, in its own right as well as a link in the evolution towards individuals able to survive and reproduce in very different environments. The importance of com parative studies in all living organisms cannot be emphasized too much. It has been the ambition with this book to treat all animals as equally important.

Brain Receptor Methodologies, Part A, General Methods and Concepts: Amines and Acetylcholine provides information pertinent to neurotransmitter and neuromodulator receptors in brain. This book explores the methodologies that can used to address several basic and clinical problems. Organized into two sections encompassing 18 chapters, this book starts with an overview of the receptor concept, which can be validated from indirect evidence obtained in studies of the quantitative aspects of drug antagonism. This text then examines the radioligand–receptor binding interactions. Other chapters consider immunocytochemistry, which has a primary role in determining the precise distribution of regulatory peptides to neural and endocrine elements of the diffuse neuroendocrine system. The final chapter discusses the use of the radioligand binding procedure for the study of muscarinic receptors, which has expanded the area of muscarinic receptor pharmacology. Biochemists, pharmacologists, physiologists, and researchers engaged in the fields of neurobiology and neuroscience will find this book extremely useful.

Each chapter of this book aims to explore the basic physical and chemical principles involved in the immunoassay techniques discussed. The book also looks at the optimization and limitations of methodology and concludes with a brief overview of the application of the performance of the technology.

Impairment of orexin/hypocretin signaling causes narcolepsy-cataplexy in animals and humans. Most human narcolepsy-cataplexy cases are associated with orexin/hypocretin ligand deficiency, which can be detected clinically using cerebrospinal orexin/hypocretin measures and may lead to future treatments with orexin/hypocretin replacement therapy. In The Orexin/Hypocretin System: Physiology and Pathophysiology, leading researchers and clinicians review these exciting developments to set the stage for further research on the loss of orexin/hypocretin neurons in humans, regulation of sleep and wakefulness by the orexin/hypocretin system, and the role of the orexin/hypocretin system in many other physiological processes, including feeding, autonomic regulation, and neuroendocrine regulation. Topics of interest include an assessment of the functions and the physiology of orexin/hypocretin, its pathophysiology in human narcolepsy-cataplexy, and possible pharmacological treatments. The authors also introduce several experimental methods for orexin/hypocretin research, and, using multidisciplinary approaches, explain their uses and limitations. Authoritative and state-of-the-art, The Orexin/Hypocretin System: Physiology and Pathophysiology will aid scientists in the search for novel bioactive peptides and their receptors, as well as novel physiological insights and opportunities for the clinical treatment of not only narcolepsy, but also a broad range of diseases associated with endocrine, feeding, and body weight regulation.