Prepurification of adipokinetic hormones (APK #472)

Adipokinetic hormones (AKHs) are insect anti-stress hormones that maintain the biochemical and physiological homeostasis of the insect body (Kodrík, 2008). AKHs are octa, nona- or decapeptides with both termini blocked: the N-terminus by a pyroglutamate residue and the C-terminus by an amide. Typically, a specific antibody and ELISA method are used for their quantification in the insect central nervous system and haemolymph. For the latter, prior to executing the ELISA test, several pre-purification steps are required; they also involve a solid phase extraction cartridge.
In the test, the AKH from the firebug Pyrrhocoris apterus known as Pyrap-AKH was employed. Its structure is: pGlu-Leu-Asn-Phe-Thr-Pro-Asn-Trp-NH2 (Kodrík et al., 2000).

• APP_NOTE_472_Adipokinetic hormones 1884 kB