The regional distribution of neuropeptides in human skin as assessed by radioimmunoassay and high-performance liquid chromatography

Abstract

In this study radioimmunoassay was used to determine neuropeptide levels in extracts from 17 differing anatomical regions of human skin. Marked regional variations of neuropeptide content for human skin were found and these variations are likely to reflect true physiological functions for the neuropeptides studied. In general the tachykinins, substance P (SP), neurokinin A (NKA) and calcitonin gene-related peptide (CGRP) were found in highest concentrations in regions of skin with the greatest tactile sensation. By contrast, highest concentrations of vasoactive intestinal peptide (VIP) and peptide histidine methionine (PHM) were found in axillary skin, where they probably play a part in axillary eccrine sweat production. Neurotensin was not found in any of the skin areas sampled, suggesting that it is relatively unimportant in human physiological skin control. Reverse-phase high-performance liquid chromatography (rpHPLC) was used to verify the results of radioimmunoassay. Both SP and NKA occurred in several regions in both their reduced and oxidized forms, as well as displaying molecular heterogeneity. CGRP occurred as one molecular species, this being alpha-CGRP, suggesting that this is the predominant molecular form in human skin. Likewise, both VIP and PHM displayed molecular homogeneity in the regions investigated by rpHPLC.