ELABELA Hormone Essential For Heart Development, Study

Scientists at A*STAR have discovered a new hormone called ELABELA that could potentially be used to treat heart disease.

AsianScientist (Dec. 9, 2013) – Scientists at A*STAR’s Institute of Medical Biology (IMB) and Institute of Molecular and Cellular Biology (IMCB) have identified a gene encoding a hormone that could potentially be used to treat heart disease.

The 32 amino acid-long hormone, which they named ELABELA, is one of the tiniest proteins made by the human body.

The team, led by IMB’s Dr. Bruno Reversade, carried out experiments to determine ELABELA’s function, since its existence was hitherto unsuspected. Using zebrafish designed to specifically lack this hormone, they uncovered that ELABELA is indispensable for heart formation. Zebrafish embryos without this gene developed rudimentary hearts or none at all. The results were published in the journal Developmental Cell.

Hormones are known to control functions such as sleep, appetite and fertility, and hormone deficiencies are the cause of many diseases, such as diabetes and obesity. However, this is the first time that scientists have revealed the existence of a conserved hormone playing such an early role during embryogenesis, effectively orchestrating the development of an entire organ.

The team also found that ELABELA uses a receptor previously believed to be specific to APELIN, a blood-pressure controlling hormone. This receptor, called APJ or Apelin Receptor, has dual functions – it first conveys signals from ELABELA and then from APELIN. Mutations in the Apelin Receptor also prevent the heart from forming. Zebrafish that lack the Apelin Receptor are referred to as the Grinch, in reference to the cold and heartless cartoon character created by Dr. Seuss in 1957.

ELABELA has also been found to be expressed in human embryonic stem cells, indicating that it might have other functions beyond its role in cardiovascular development.

The hormone may also be applicable in cardiac repair and control of hypertension. As some people might have a harmful copy of the ELABELA gene in their genetic make-up, early screening in the general population might also help to detect a predisposition to heart anomalies.

“The human genome has been sequenced over a decade ago. That we can still find anonymous hormones charms me. There are a still a few more to discover but not for long,” said Dr. Reversade.

The article can be found at: Chng S et al. (2013) ELABELA: A Hormone Essential for Heart Development Signals via the Apelin Receptor.

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Source: A*STAR; Photo: Neal/Flickr/CC.
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