Corticotropin-releasing hormone

Corticotropin-releasing hormone (CRH) (also known as corticotropin-releasing factor (CRF) or corticoliberin; corticotropin may also be spelled corticotrophin) is a peptide hormone involved in stress responses. It is a releasing hormone that belongs to corticotropin-releasing factor family. In humans, it is encoded by the CRH gene. Its main function is the stimulation of the pituitary synthesis of adrenocorticotropic hormone (ACTH), as part of the hypothalamic–pituitary–adrenal axis (HPA axis).

CRH
Available structures
PDBOrtholog search: PDBe RCSB
Identifiers
AliasesCRH, CRF, CRH1, corticotropin releasing hormone
External IDsOMIM: 122560 MGI: 88496 HomoloGene: 599 GeneCards: CRH
Orthologs
SpeciesHumanMouse
Entrez

1392

12918

Ensembl

ENSG00000147571

ENSMUSG00000049796

UniProt

P06850

Q8CIT0

RefSeq (mRNA)

NM_000756

NM_205769

RefSeq (protein)

NP_000747

NP_991338

Location (UCSC)Chr 8: 66.18 – 66.18 MbChr 3: 19.75 – 19.75 Mb
PubMed search
Wikidata
View/Edit HumanView/Edit Mouse

Corticotropin-releasing hormone (CRH) is a 41-amino acid peptide derived from a 196-amino acid preprohormone. CRH is secreted by the paraventricular nucleus (PVN) of the hypothalamus in response to stress. Increased CRH production has been observed to be associated with Alzheimer's disease and major depression, and autosomal recessive hypothalamic corticotropin deficiency has multiple and potentially fatal metabolic consequences including hypoglycemia.

In addition to being produced in the hypothalamus, CRH is also synthesized in peripheral tissues, such as T lymphocytes, and is highly expressed in the placenta. In the placenta, CRH is a marker that determines the length of gestation and the timing of parturition and delivery. A rapid increase in circulating levels of CRH occurs at the onset of parturition, suggesting that, in addition to its metabolic functions, CRH may act as a trigger for parturition.

A recombinant version for diagnostics is called corticorelin (INN).

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