Oxidative Stress & Cardiovascular Disease

Endothelin (1-21)

Serum, EDTA plasma, urine, cell culture supernatant, saliva

Store freshly collected blood immediately on ice and centrifuge within one day. Samples should be stored at -20°C, for long time storage store at -70°C. Maximum 4 freezing/thawing cycles. Urine samples can be used without any pre-treatment.

70 blood donors, median 0,26 fmol/ml.

Human, horse, cat, pig, dog, rat

ET(1-21): 100%, ET2 (1-21): 100%, ET3 (1-21): <5%, Big Endothelin (1-38) <1%, Big Endothelin ( 22-38): <1% In normal human plasma samples it is estimated. ET-2 < 20 % of ET-1 level. ET-3 at 50% of the ET-1 level

Cleavage of Big Endothelin by a membrane-bound metalloproteinase, the Endothelin Converting Enzyme, leads to the active Endothelin (1-21), a potent vasoconstrictor, and to the biological inactive C-terminal fragment (22-38). The half-life of Endothelin in the plasma is less than one minute, whereas clearance of Big Endothelin is much lower. Endothelin has been indentified in a variety of tissues, including lung, kidney, brain, pituitary and peripheral endocrine tissues and placenta. The biological role of Endothelin extends beyond regulating vascular tone also in its growth regulatory properties. The peptide interacts in an autocrine/paracrine manner with specific Endothelin receptors found on numerous cells, including smooth muscle cells, myocytes, and fibroblasts.

Clinical significance: • Heart failure and acute myocardial infarction • Oncology • Hypertension • Marker for endothelial dysfunction, liver damage and renal disease