© Springer International Publishing AG 2017 113
T. Angelone et al. (eds.), Chromogranins: from Cell Biology to Physiology
and Biomedicine, UNIPA Springer Series, DOI 10.1007/978-3-319-58338-9_8
Cardiac Physio-Pharmacological Aspects
of Three Chromogranin A-Derived Peptides:
Vasostatin, Catestatin, and Serpinin
Tommaso Angelone, Bruno Tota, and Maria Carmela Cerra
Abstract The discovery of a cardiac production of Chromogranin A (CgA) opened
a rich field of research whose result was a cardiovascular dimension of this multi-
functional protein and the fragments derived by its proteolytic cleavage. In line with
its precursor function, at the cardiac level, CgA undergoes proteolytic processing.
Moreover, as shown by ex vivo functional studies, it acts on the heart itself. Through
the amino terminal (vasostatin: VS) and catestatin (CST) domains, CgA elicits a
direct cardiodepressive, antiadrenergic and cardioprotective influence, acting as a
cardiac stabilizer under normal conditions and in the presence of stress (i.e. cate-
cholaminergic, and endothelinergic). At the same time, through the C-terminal
Serpinin (Serp), CgA elicits a cardiostimulatory beta-adrenergic-like action. In this
chapter, the results of more than 10 years of research will be described in order to
illustrate the cardiovascular profile of these peptides, as well as their mechanisms of
action. The purpose is to highlight the expanding role this protein and its fragments
in the neuroendocrine circuits that finely control heart performance in health and
disease.
Abbreviations
AD Adenylate Cyclase
Akt Protein Kinase B
Au Aurum
CA Catecholamine
CaM Calmodulin
cAMP Cyclic Adenosine Monophosphate
CgA Chromogranin A
cGMP Cyclic Guanosine Monophosphate
Chr Chromofungin
T. Angelone, PhD (*) • B. Tota • M.C. Cerra
Department of Biology, Ecology and Earth Sciences, University of Calabria,
87036 Arcavacata di Rende (CS), Italy
e-mail: [email protected]; [email protected]; [email protected]