Growth hormone (GH) or somatotropin (STH) is a protein hormone which stimulates growth and cell reproduction in humans and other animals. It is a 191-amino acid, single chain polypeptide hormone which is synthesized, stored, and secreted by the somatotroph cells within the lateral wings of the anterior pituitary gland. Image File history File links Download high resolution version (1008x684, 52 KB) Growth Hormone. ... The Entrez logo The Entrez Global Query Cross-Database Search System allows access to databases at the National Center for Biotechnology Information (NCBI) website. ... Look up Hugo in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... The Mendelian Inheritance in Man project is a database that catalogues all the known diseases with a genetic component, and - when possible - links them to the relevant genes in the human genome. ... National Center for Biotechnology Information logo The National Center for Biotechnology Information (NCBI) is part of the United States National Library of Medicine (NLM), a branch of the National Institutes of Health. ... Swiss-Prot is a curated biological database of protein sequences created in 1986 by Amos Bairoch during his PhD and developed by the Swiss Institute of Bioinformatics and the European Bioinformatics Institute. ... Short and long arms Chromosome. ... Chromosome 17 is one of the 23 pairs of chromosomes in humans. ... For other uses, see Hormone (disambiguation). ... Human development is the process of growing to maturity. ... Drawing of the structure of cork as it appeared under the microscope to Robert Hooke from Micrographia which is the origin of the word cell being used to describe the smallest unit of a living organism Cells in culture, stained for keratin (red) and DNA (green) The cell is the... Peptides are the family of molecules formed from the linking, in a defined order, of various amino acids. ... Somatotropes are cells in the anterior pituitary which produce growth hormone. ... The anterior pituitary (also called the adenohypophysis, from Greek adeno, gland; hypo, under; physis, growth; hence, glandular undergrowth) comprises the anterior lobe of the pituitary gland and is part of the endocrine system. ...

This article describes growth hormone physiology, with brief mentions of the diseases of GH deficiency, GH excess (acromegaly and pituitary gigantism), as well as GH treatment. For information on a common growth hormone sometimes given to cows, see bovine somatotropin. Growth hormone deficiency is the medical condition of inadequate production of growth hormone (GH) and its effects on children and adults. ... Acromegaly (from Greek akros high and megas large - extremities enlargement) is a hormonal disorder that results when the pituitary gland produces excess growth hormone (hGH). ... Anna Haining Bates with her parents Greek gigas, gigantus (giant) is a condition characterized by excessive height growth and bigness. ... Growth hormone (GH) is a protein hormone secreted by the pituitary gland which stimulates growth and cell reproduction. ... This article is about rBST. For other uses, see RBST. // Somatotropin (ST) is a protein hormone produced in the pituitary gland of all vertebrates including cattle. ...

Terminology

See articles on GH treatment for more complete discussions of GH therapy and the HGH issue.

Growth hormone (GH) is also called "somatotropin" (British: "somatotrophin"). Growth hormone (GH) is a protein hormone secreted by the pituitary gland which stimulates growth and cell reproduction. ...

"HGH" refers to human growth hormone and is an abbreviation for human GH secreted by, or measured in extracts from, human pituitary glands. Human growth hormone can refer to: For physiology of human growth hormone, see growth hormone. ...

In 1985, biosynthetic human growth hormone replaced pituitary-derived human growth hormone for therapeutic use in the U.S. and elsewhere. Biosynthetic human growth hormone, also referred to as recombinant human growth hormone, is also called "somatropin" and abbreviated as "rhGH". Recombinant DNA technology adds/replaces DNA in an organism resulting in the recipient organism containing exogenous DNA. Recombinant proteins are proteins that are produced by different genetically modified organisms following insertion of the relevant DNA into their genome. ...

Since the mid-1980s the abbreviation HGH has begun to carry paradoxical connotations, and now rarely refers to real GH used for indicated purposes.

Structure and gene of the human GH molecule

The genes for human growth hormone are localized in the q22-24 region of chromosome 17 (GH1) and are closely related to human chorionic somatomammotropin (hCS, also known as placental lactogen) genes. GH, human chorionic somatomammotropin (hCS), and prolactin (PRL) are a group of homologous hormones with growth-promoting and lactogenic activity. Also called human placental lactogen, somatomammotropin is an important hormone of pregnancy. ... Human placental lactogen (HPL), also called human chorionic somatomammotropin, is a polypeptide placental hormone. ... Prolactin (PRL) is a peptide hormone primarily associated with lactation. ... In biology, homology is any similarity between structures that is due to their shared ancestry. ...

The major isoform of the human growth hormone is a protein of 191 amino acids and a molecular weight of about 22,000 daltons. The structure includes four helices necessary for functional interaction with the GH receptor. GH is structurally and apparently evolutionarily homologous to prolactin and chorionic somatomammotropin. Despite marked structural similarities between growth hormone from different species, only human and primate growth hormones have significant effects in humans. This article is about the class of chemicals. ... The unified atomic mass unit (u), or dalton (Da), is a small unit of mass used to express atomic and molecular masses. ... For other uses, see Species (disambiguation). ... Families 15, See classification A primate is any member of the biological order Primates, the group that contains all the species commonly related to the lemurs, monkeys, and apes, with the latter category including humans. ...

Secretion of GH

Several molecular forms of GH circulate. Much of the growth hormone in the circulation is bound to a protein (growth hormone binding protein, GHBP) which is derived from the growth hormone receptor. 3D (left and center) and 2D (right) representations of the terpenoid molecule atisane. ... Growth hormone binding protein is, as its name would indicate, a carrier protein for growth hormone. ... Growth hormone receptor is a protein which acts as a receptor for somatotropin. ...

Regulation

Peptides released by neurosecretory nuclei of the hypothalamus into the portal venous blood surrounding the pituitary are the major controllers of GH secretion by the somatotropes. However, although the balance of these stimulating and inhibiting peptides determines GH release, this balance is affected by many physiological stimulators and inhibitors of GH secretion. ^[1] The hypothalamus links the nervous system to the endocrine system via the pituitary gland (hypophysis). ... In human anatomy, the portal venous system is the system of veins that drain into the portal vein. ...

Stimulators of GH secretion include:

• growth hormone releasing hormone (GHRH) from the arcuate nucleus
• ghrelin
• sleep
• exercise
• low levels of blood sugar (hypoglycemia)
• dietary protein
• estradiol
• arginine^[2]

Inhibitors of GH secretion include: Growth hormone-releasing hormone (GHRH), also known as growth hormone-releasing factor (GRF or GHRF), is a 44-amino acid peptide hormone produced in the arcuate nucleus of the hypothalamus. ... The arcuate nucleus is an aggregation of neurons in the mediobasal hypothalamus, adjacent to the third ventricle and the median eminence. ... Ghrelin is a hormone produced by P/D1 cells lining the acer of the human stomach that stimulate appetite. ... In medicine, blood sugar is a term used to refer to levels of glucose in the blood. ... Hypoglycemia (hypoglycaemia in British English) is a medical term referring to a pathologic state produced by a lower than normal level of glucose (sugar) in the blood. ... Estradiol (17β-estradiol) (also oestradiol) is a sex hormone. ... Arginine (abbreviated as Arg or R)[1] is an α-amino acid. ...

• somatostatin from the periventricular nucleus
• circulating concentrations of GH and IGF-1 (negative feedback)
• dietary carbohydrate
• glucocorticoids

In addition to control by endogenous processes, a number of foreign compounds (xenobiotics) are now known to influence GH secretion and function ^[3], highlighting the fact that the GH-IGF axis is an emerging target for certain endocrine disrupting chemicals ( see endocrine disruptor). Somatostatin is a hormone. ... The Periventricular nucleus is a composite structure of the hypothalamus. ... The insulin-like growth factors (IGFs) are polypeptides with high sequence similarity to insulin. ... This article does not cite any references or sources. ... Lactose is a disaccharide found in milk. ... Glucocorticoids are a class of steroid hormones characterised by an ability to bind with the cortisol receptor and trigger similar effects. ... A xenobiotic is a chemical which is found in an organism but which is not normally produced or expected to be present in it. ... Endocrine disruptors are substances which interfere with the endocrine system by mimicking, blocking or otherwise disrupting the function of hormones. ...

Secretion patterns

Most of the physiologically important secretion occurs as several large pulses or peaks of GH release each day. The plasma concentration of GH during these peaks may range from 5 to 35 ng/mL or more. Peaks typically last from 10 to 30 minutes before returning to basal levels. The largest and most predictable of these GH peaks occurs about an hour after onset of sleep.^[4] Otherwise there is wide variation between days and individuals. Between the peaks, basal GH levels are low, usually less than 3 ng/mL for most of the day and night.

The amount and pattern of GH secretion change throughout life. Basal levels are highest in early childhood. The amplitude and frequency of peaks is greatest during the pubertal growth spurt. Healthy children and adolescents average about 8 peaks per 24 hours. Adults average about 5 peaks. Basal levels and the frequency and amplitude of peaks decline throughout adult life. Puberty refers to the process of physical changes by which a childs body becomes an adult body capable of reproduction. ...

Functions of GH

Effects of growth hormone on the tissues of the body can generally be described as anabolic (building up). Like most other protein hormones GH acts by interacting with a specific receptor on the surface of cells. Anabolism is the metabolic process that builds larger molecules from smaller ones. ... In biochemistry, a receptor is a protein on the cell membrane or within the cytoplasm or cell nucleus that binds to a specific molecule (a ligand), such as a neurotransmitter, hormone, or other substance, and initiates the cellular response to the ligand. ...

Increasing height

Height growth in childhood is the best known effect of GH action, and appears to be stimulated by at least two mechanisms.

1. GH directly stimulates division and multiplication of chondrocytes of cartilage. These are the primary cells in the growing ends (epiphyses) of children's long bones (arms, legs, digits).
2. GH also stimulates production of insulin-like growth factor 1 (IGF-1, formerly known as somatomedin C), a hormone homologous to proinsulin.^[5] The liver is a major target organ of GH for this process, and is the principal site of IGF-1 production. IGF-1 has growth-stimulating effects on a wide variety of tissues. Additional IGF-1 is generated within target tissues, making it apparently both an endocrine and an autocrine/paracrine hormone. IGF-1 also has stimulatory effects on osteoblast and chondrocyte activity to promote bone growth.

Chondrocytes are the cells of cartilage. ... Cartilage is a type of dense connective tissue. ... For other uses of the word bone, see bone (disambiguation). ... Insulin-like growth factor 1 (IGF-1) is a polypeptide protein hormone similar in molecular structure to insulin. ... Proinsulin is the substance made first in the pancreas that is then made into insulin. ... For the bird, see Liver bird. ... An endocrine gland is one of a set of internal organs involved in the secretion of hormones into the blood. ... Autocrine signalling is a form of signalling in which the target cell is the secretory cell itself. ... Paracrine signalling is a form of signalling in which the target cell is close to the signal releasing cell, and the signal chemical is broken down too quickly to be carried to other parts of the body. ...

Other functions

Although height growth is the best known effect of GH, it serves many other metabolic functions as well.

• It increases calcium retention, and strengthens and increases the mineralization of bone.
• It increases muscle mass through the creation of new muscle cells (i.e. hyperplasia, which differs from hypertrophy)
• It promotes lipolysis, which results in the reduction of adipose tissue (body fat).
• It increases protein synthesis and stimulates the growth of all internal organs excluding the brain.
• It plays a role in fuel homeostasis.
• It reduces liver uptake of glucose, an effect that opposes that of insulin.
• It promotes liver gluconeogenesis.^[6]
• It contributes to the maintenance and function of pancreatic islets.
• It stimulates the immune system.

For other uses, see Calcium (disambiguation). ... Ossification is the process of bone formation, in which connective tissues, such as cartilage are turned to bone or bone-like tissue. ... For other uses of Muscles, see Muscles (disambiguation). ... Hyperplasia (or hypergenesis) is a general term for an increase in the number of the cells of an organ or tissue causing it to increase in size. ... Bodybuilder Markus Rühl has marked hypertrophy of skeletal muscle. ... Lipolysis is the breakdown of fat stored in fat cells. ... Adipose tissue is one of the main types of connective tissue. ... Protein synthesis is the creation of proteins using DNA and RNA. Biological and artificial methods for creation of proteins differ significantly. ... Human brain In animals, the brain (enkephale) (Greek for in the skull), is the control center of the central nervous system, responsible for behavior. ... Homeostasis is the property of either an open system or a closed system, especially a living organism, which regulates its internal environment so as to maintain a stable, constant condition. ... For the bird, see Liver bird. ... Glucose (Glc), a monosaccharide (or simple sugar), is an important carbohydrate in biology. ... Not to be confused with inulin. ... Pyruvic acid Oxaloacetic acid Phosphoenolpyruvate Fructose 1,6-bisphosphate Fructose 6-phosphate Glucose-6-phosphate Glucose Gluconeogenesis is the generation of glucose from non-sugar carbon substrates like pyruvate, lactate, glycerol, and amino acids (primarily alanine and glutamine). ... A porcine islet of Langerhans. ... A scanning electron microscope image of a single neutrophil (yellow), engulfing anthrax bacteria (orange). ...

Growth hormone excess: (acromegaly and pituitary gigantism)

The most common disease of GH excess is a pituitary tumor comprised of somatotroph cells of the anterior pituitary. These somatotroph adenomas are benign and grow slowly, gradually producing more and more GH. For years, the principal clinical problems are those of GH excess. Eventually the adenoma may become large enough to cause headaches, impair vision by pressure on the optic nerves, or cause deficiency of other pituitary hormones by displacement. Acromegaly (from Greek akros high and megas large - extremities enlargement) is a hormonal disorder that results when the pituitary gland produces excess growth hormone (hGH). ... Anna Haining Bates with her parents Greek gigas, gigantus (giant) is a condition characterized by excessive height growth and bigness. ... An adenoma is a collection of growths (-oma) of glandular origin. ...

Prolonged GH excess thickens the bones of the jaw, fingers and toes. Resulting heaviness of the jaw and increased thickness of digits is referred to as acromegaly. Accompanying problems can include pressure on nerves (e.g., carpal tunnel syndrome), muscle weakness, insulin resistance or even a rare form of type 2 diabetes, and reduced sexual function. Acromegaly (from Greek akros high and megas large - extremities enlargement) is a hormonal disorder that results when the pituitary gland produces excess growth hormone (hGH). ... This article is about the medical condition. ...

GH-secreting tumors are typically recognized in the 5th decade of life. It is extremely rare for such a tumor to occur in childhood, but when it does the excessive GH can cause excessive growth, traditionally referred to as pituitary gigantism. Anna Haining Bates with her parents Greek gigas, gigantus (giant) is a condition characterized by excessive height growth and bigness. ...

Surgical removal is the usual treatment for GH-producing tumors. In some circumstances focused radiation or a GH antagonist such as bromocriptine or octreotide may be employed to shrink the tumor or block function.

Growth hormone deficiency (GHD)

Deficiency of GH produces significantly different problems at various ages. In children, growth failure and short stature are the major manifestations of GH deficiency. In adults the effects of deficiency are more subtle, and may include deficiencies of strength, energy, and bone mass, as well as increased cardiovascular risk. Growth hormone deficiency is the medical condition of inadequate production of growth hormone (GH) and its effects on children and adults. ...

There are many causes of GH deficiency, including mutations of specific genes, congenital malformations involving the hypothalamus and/or pituitary gland, and damage to the pituitary from injury, surgery or disease.

Diagnosis of GH deficiency involves a multiple step diagnostic process, usually culminating in GH stimulation test(s) to see if the patient's pituitary gland will release a pulse of GH when provoked by various stimuli.

GH deficiency is treated by replacing GH. All GH in current use is a biosynthetic version of human GH, manufactured by recombinant DNA technology. As GH is a large protein molecule, it must be injected into subcutaneous tissue to get it into the blood (injections no longer have to enter muscle mass since 1985 with the production of synthetic GH). When the patient has had a long-standing deficiency of GH, benefits of treatment are often dramatic and gratifying and side effects of treatment are rare. Increased growth in childhood can result in dramatically improved adult height.

GH is used as replacement therapy in adults with GH deficiency of either childhood-onset (after completing growth phase) or adult-onset (usually as a result of an acquired pituitary tumor). In these patients, benefits have variably included reduced fat mass, increased lean mass, increased bone density, improved lipid profile, reduced cardiovascular risk factors, and improved psychosocial well-being.

This topic is treated more fully in the articles growth hormone deficiency and growth hormone treatment. Growth hormone deficiency is the medical condition of inadequate production of growth hormone (GH) and its effects on children and adults. ... Growth hormone (GH) is a protein hormone secreted by the pituitary gland which stimulates growth and cell reproduction. ...

Therapeutic use of growth hormone

Other GH uses and treatment indications

Many other conditions besides GH deficiency cause poor growth, but growth benefits (height gains) are often poorer than when GH deficiency is treated. Examples of other causes of shortness often treated with growth hormone are Turner syndrome, chronic renal failure, Prader-Willi syndrome, intrauterine growth retardation, and severe idiopathic short stature. Higher ("pharmacologic") doses are required to produce significant acceleration of growth in these conditions, producing blood levels well above physiologic. Despite the higher doses, side effects during treatment are rare, and vary little according to the condition being treated. Prader-Willi syndrome (abbreviated PWS) is a genetic disorder, in which seven genes (or some subset thereof) on chromosome 15 are missing or unexpressed (chromosome 15q partial deletion) on the paternal chromosome. ... Intrauterine growth retardation or Intrauterine growth restriction (IUGR) refers to the condition during pregnancy where a fetus is considered to be too small for its gestational age (generally in the 10th percentile). ... Idiopathic short stature (ISS) refers to extreme short stature that does not have a diagnostic explanation (idiopathic designates a condition that is unexplained or not understood) after an ordinary growth evaluation. ...

Sometimes GH is used for benefits other than increasing height. GH treatment improves muscle strength and slightly reduces body fat in Prader-Willi syndrome, benefits more important to these children than increased height. It has also been shown to help maintain muscle mass in AIDS wasting. GH can also be used in patients with short bowel syndrome to lessen the requirement for intravenous total parenteral nutrition. For other uses, see AIDS (disambiguation). ... Short bowel syndrome is a malabsorption disorder caused by either the surgical removal of the small intestine or the loss of its absorptive function due to diseases. ... Total parenteral nutrition (TPN), is the practice of feeding a person intravenously, circumventing the gut. ...

Uses that are controversial include

• GH treatment for remission of Multiple sclerosis
• GH treatment to reverse effects of ageing in older adults (see below)
• GH treatment to enhance weight loss in obesity
• GH treatment for fibromyalgia
• GH treatment for Crohn's disease and ulcerative colitis
• GH treatment for idiopathic short stature
• GH treatment for bodybuilding or athletic enhancement

The effects of ageing on a human face Elderly woman Ageing or aging is the process of systems deterioration with time. ... Weight loss, in the context of medicine or health or physical fitness, is a reduction of the total body weight, due to a mean loss of fluid, body fat or adipose tissue and/or lean mass, namely bone mineral deposits, muscle, tendon and other connective tissue. ... Fibromyalgia (FM or FMS) is a chronic syndrome (constellation of signs and symptoms) characterized by diffuse or specific muscle, joint, or bone pain, fatigue, and a wide range of other symptoms. ... Crohns disease (also known as regional enteritis) is a chronic, episodic, inflammatory condition of the gastrointestinal tract characterized by transmural inflammation (affecting the entire wall of the involved bowel) and skip lesions (areas of inflammation with areas of normal lining between). ... Idiopathic short stature (ISS) refers to extreme short stature that does not have a diagnostic explanation (idiopathic designates a condition that is unexplained or not understood) after an ordinary growth evaluation. ... Growth Hormone (GH) has attracted increasing interest and use by amateur and professional bodybuilders, as well as professional athletes to increase performance and muscle growth. ...

Anti-aging agent

Claims for GH as an anti-aging treatment date back to 1990 when the New England Journal of Medicine published a study where GH was used to treat 12 men over 60. At the conclusion of the study all the men showed statistically significant increases in lean body mass and bone mineral, while the control group did not. The authors of the study noted that these were the kind of changes that would occur naturally over a 10 to 20 year aging period. Despite the fact the authors at no time claimed that GH had reversed the aging process itself, their results were mis-interpreted as indicating GH was an effective anti-aging agent. ^[7]

A Stanford University School of Medicine survey of clinical studies on the subject published in early 2007 showed that the application of GH on healthy elderly patients increased muscle by about 2 kg and decreased body fat by the same amount.^[7] However, these were the only positive effects from taking GH. No other critical factors were affected, such as bone density, cholesterol levels, lipid measurements, maximal oxygen consumption, or any other factor that would indicate increased fitness.^[7] Researchers also didn't discover any gain in muscle strength, which led them to believe that GH merely let the body store more water in the muscles rather than increase muscle growth. This would explain the increase in lean body mass. Regular application of GH did show several negative side effects such as joint swelling, joint pain, carpal tunnel syndrome, and an increased risk of diabetes.^[7] This article is about the medical condition. ... This article is about the disease that features high blood sugar. ...

Risks and side effects of GH treatment

Side effects in adults may include fluid retention, joint pain, and nerve compression symptoms. There is theoretical concern that GH treatment may increase the risks of diabetes or cancer, especially in those with other predispositions treated with higher doses. It is pointed out, however, that diabetes is a disease that develops over perhaps 30 or 40 years of poor eating habits, and the most likely cause of diabetes is the poor nutrition which the patient had prior to the use of growth hormone. One survey of adults who had been treated with replacement cadaver GH (which has not been used anywhere in the world, since 1985) during childhood showed a mildly increased incidence of colon cancer, but linkage with the GH treatment was not established.^[8] This page is about the condition called edema. ... This article does not cite any references or sources. ... Paresthesia or paraesthesia (in British English) is a sensation of tingling, pricking, or numbness of a persons skin with no apparent long-term physical effect, more generally known as the feeling of pins and needles or of a limb being asleep (but not directly related to the phenomenon of...

History

The identification, purification and later synthesis of growth hormone is associated with Choh Hao Li. The history of GH use, from extraction of GH from human pituitary glands to the limited catastrophe of Creutzfeldt-Jakob Disease to the expanded use and enormous costs of synthetic GH is outlined in the article on GH treatment. Choh Hao Li (sometimes Cho Hao Li) (April 21, 1913—November 28, 1987) was a Chinese-born U.S. biochemist who discovered, in 1966, that human pituitary growth hormone (somatotropin) consists of a chain of 256 amino acids. ... Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease (CJD) is a very rare and incurable degenerative neurological disorder (brain disease) that is ultimately fatal. ... Growth hormone (GH) is a protein hormone secreted by the pituitary gland which stimulates growth and cell reproduction. ...

As of 2005, synthetic growth hormones available in the United States (and their manufacturers) included Nutropin (Genentech), Humatrope (Lilly), Genotropin (Pfizer), Norditropin (Novo), and Saizen (Merck Serono). The products are nearly identical in composition, efficacy, and cost, varying primarily in the formulations and delivery devices. In 2005 an Israeli company, Teva, offered Tev-Tropin in the U.S. at a lower price. In 2006, the U.S. Food and Drug Association (FDA) approved a follow-on version of rhGH called Onmitrope (Sandoz). A sustained-release form of growth hormone, Nutropin Depot (Genentech and Alkermes) was approved by the FDA in 1999, allowing for fewer injections (every 2 or 4 weeks instead of daily); the product was discontinued in 2004. In chemistry, chemical synthesis is purposeful execution of chemical reactions in order to get a product, or several products. ... Genentech, Inc. ... Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE: LLY) is a global pharmaceutical company and one of the worlds largest corporations. ... Pfizer Incorporated (NYSE: PFE) is the worlds largest research-based pharmaceutical company[1].[1] The company is based in New York City. ... Novo Nordisk (OMX: NOVO B, NYSE: NVO) manufactures and markets pharmaceutical products and services. ... In September 2006, Merck KGaA announced its intent to purchase the majority of Serono shares from Ernesto Bertarelli and the Bertarelli family. ... Teva Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd. ...

See also

• Growth hormone 1
• Growth hormone treatment
• Growth hormone treatment for bodybuilding
• HGH controversies
• List of recombinant proteins
• IGF-1

RNA expression pattern Orthologs Human Mouse Entrez na Ensembl na Uniprot na Refseq Location na Pubmed search na Growth hormone 1, also known as GH1, is a human gene. ... Growth hormone (GH) is a protein hormone secreted by the pituitary gland which stimulates growth and cell reproduction. ... Growth Hormone (GH) has attracted increasing interest and use by amateur and professional bodybuilders, as well as professional athletes to increase performance and muscle growth. ... There are many controversies around the claims, products, and businesses related to the use of growth hormone as an anti-aging therapy. ... Since human recombinants have replaced the animal version in human therapeutics, the prefix of rh for human recombinant appears less and less in the literature // Human growth hormone (rhGH) Humatrope® from Lilly; and Serostim® from Serono replaced cadaver harvested human growth hormone Human insulin (rhI) Humulin® from Lilly replaced bovine... The insulin-like growth factors (IGFs) are polypeptides with high sequence similarity to insulin. ...

References

1. ^ Actions of Anterior Pituitary Hormones: Growth Hormone (GH). Medical College of Georgia. 2007.
2. ^ Alba-Roth J, Müller O, Schopohl J, von Werder K (1988). "Arginine stimulates growth hormone secretion by suppressing endogenous somatostatin secretion". J Clin Endocrinol Metab 67 (6): 1186-9. PMID 2903866. 
3. ^ Scarth J. "Modulation of the growth hormone-insulin-like growth factor (GH-IGF) axis by pharmaceutical, nutraceutical and environmental xenobiotics: an emerging role for xenobiotic-metabolizing enzymes and the transcription factors regulating their expression. A review". Xenobiotica 36 (2-3): 119-218. PMID 16702112. 
4. ^ Takahashi Y, Kipnis D, Daughaday W (1968). "Growth hormone secretion during sleep". J Clin Invest 47 (9): 2079-90. PMID 5675428. 
5. ^ Actions of Anterior Pituitary Hormones: Physiologic Actions of GH. Medical College of Georgia. 2007.
6. ^ Michael W. King. Growth Hormone. Indiana State University. 2006.
7. ^ ^{a b c d} "No proof that growth hormone therapy makes you live longer, study finds"
8. ^ BBC News. 26 July, 2002. Hormone therapy linked to cancer

External links

• Growth Disorders Section of The Hormone Foundation
• Protein Data Bank Molecule of the Month: Growth Hormone
• Growth Hormone Rhythms from the Brain
• Growth Hormone & IGF Research Journal
• Growth Hormone Overview