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Cardiovascular Research 1999 43(1):13-16; doi:10.1016/S0008-6363(99)00112-1
© 1999 by European Society of Cardiology
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Copyright © 1999, European Society of Cardiology

Opioid peptides and the heart

Barbara A Barron*

Department of Integrative Physiology, Cardiovascular Research Institute, University of North Texas Health Science Center, 3500 Camp Bowie Blvd. Fort Worth, TX 76107, USA

* Tel.: +1-817-7352484; fax: +1-817-7355084

Received 25 February 1999; accepted 11 March 1999

The first 150 words of the full text of this article appear below.

See article by Millington et al. ([1], pages 107–116) in this issue.


   1 Introduction
 
In this issue Millington et al. [1] describe the localization of pro-opiomelanocortin (POMC) message and peptide products in adult and neonatal rat heart. These authors are to be commended for delving into the esoteric area of cardiac endocrine function and opioid peptides. The finding of atrial natriuretic peptide and opioid peptides in cardiac myocytes confirms the ability of the heart to participate in homeostasis beyond simple pumping. Consideration can now be given to the endocrine function of the heart. Besides POMC, proenkephalin and prodynorphin have been identified in heart and cardiomyocytes of different species including rodents, cat, dog, pig and humans [2–6]. The questions then arise: Why do muscle cells make opioid peptides? What are their functions? How are opioid peptides regulated in the cardiac myocyte? Before examining these questions a brief review of opioid . . . [Full Text of this Article]


   2 Enkephalin biochemistry
 

   3 Cardiac opioid peptides
 

   4 Opiate receptors and the heart
 

   5 Summary
 

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