Uroguanylin belongs to the guanylin family of cyclic guanosine monophosphate (cGMP) regulating peptides. This family of peptides shows homology to the heat stable enterotoxins produced by strains of Escherichia coli and other enteric bacteria that cause a secretory form of diarrhea. Along with the isolation of uroguanylin from urine and the subsequent demonstration of its natriuretic activity by direct effects on the kidney, uroguanylin has been suggested to play a role in the physiological maintenance of sodium balance in vivo. Kita T., et al., Am. J. Physiol., 266, F342 (1994); Beltowski, J., J. Physiol. Pharmacol., 52, 351 (2001); Forte, LR., J. Clin. Invest., 112, 1138 (2003).
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