%0 Journal Article
%T Species-Specific Actions of Incretin: From the Evolutionary Perspective
%A Yukiko Kawasaki
%A Yoshiyuki Hamamoto and Hiroyuki Koshiyama
%J Japanese Clinical Medicine
%D 2012
%I 
%R 10.4137/JCM.S5915
%X Two modes of incretin-based therapy, incretin mimetics (ie, glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1) agonists) and incretin enhancers (ie, inhibitors of dipeptidyl peptidase IV (DPP-IV)), have recently been introduced into the clinical use. From the viewpoint of evolutionary endocrinology of GLP-1 and their receptors, the incretin action of GLP-1 seems to be relatively recent. Exendin-3 and exendin-4 are paralogs of GLP-1 from the lizards, and the synthetic exendin-4, exenatide, is a paralog of GLP-1. It has recently been indicated that GLP-1 and its receptor are expressed in the taste buds of the tongue, suggesting their possible function in the taste sensing signal pathway. In order to elucidate unknown functions of GLP-1 and its agonists and enhancers, ie, other than incretin actions in humans, it is possibly useful to consider GLP-1 from the viewpoint of integrated systems biology and evolutionary endocrinology.
%U http://www.la-press.com/species-specific-actions-of-incretin-from-the-evolutionary-perspective-article-a2312