Somatotropin

Description

Somatotropin, a second-generation (methionine-free) human growth hormone produced by recombinant technology, was launched in the U.S.A. for the treatment of growth failure in children due to chronic renal insufficiency before transplantation and for the long term treatment of short stature in children with growth failure due to a lack of endogenous growth hormone secretion. The efficacy of somatotropin is reportedly comparable to the first biosynthetic growth hormone somatrem, which contains a methionyl residue, but with less frequent antibody formation and rarely causes allergic effects or impairs growth response. Somatotropin is also in clinical trials for the treatment of growth hormone deficiency in adults and is currently under approval review for Turner's syndrome.

Description

Somatropin is a growth hormone useful in the treatment of hypopituitaxy dwarfism and other disorders resulting from growth hormone deficiencies. Lilly has used recombinant technology to produce human somatropin identical to the natural hormone. Somamm, the N-methionyl derivative of somatropin, was launched in 1985 by Genentech for the same indications.

Chemical properties

White or almost white powder.

Originator

Genentech (U.S.A.)

Originator

Lilly (USA)

The Uses of Somatotropin

Human Growth Hormone is a hormone (growth).

brand name

(Genentech); Genotropin (Pharmacia); Humatrope (Lilly);Nutropin (Genentech); Saizen (Serono); Serostim (Serono);22krl;Antuitrin growth;Antuitrin-t;Asellacrin;Cb 311;Corpormon;Crescormon;Grorm;Human groth hormone;Human growth hormon;Leutrophin;Nanormin;Nanormon;Phynatol;Phyol;Phyoneon;Protopin;Protropin;Rx 099916;Somacton;Somatonorm;Somatormone;Somatotrope choay;Somatrofin;Somatropin;Nutropln.

World Health Organization (WHO)

Somatropin, a pituitary-derived human growth hormone, has been used in the treatment of hypopituitary dwarfism for over twenty years. In 1985 it became known that Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease, a potentially fatal form of brain degeneration resulting from a slow neurotropic viral infection, had developed in several patients who had received preparations of somatropin in the late 1960s/early 1970s. This led to the withdrawal of these preparations in many countries. An international collaborative effort was maintained to identify newlydiagnosed cases. By 1990 a total of 30 such cases had been notified. More efficient purification procedures introduced during the 1970s greatly reduced the risk of viral contamination, but products containing pituitary-derived somatropin have been superseded by biosynthetically-manufactured preparations produced using recombinant techniques.

General Description

Somatropin for injection(Humatrope) is a natural-sequence human GH of rDNAorigin. Its composition and sequence of amino acids areidentical with those of human GH of pituitary origin. It isadministered intramuscularly or subcutaneously. Thedosage range is 0.05 to 0.1 IU.

Clinical Use

Human Growth Hormone (Somatotropin) is a protein that is essential for normal growth and developmentin humans. Human Growth Hormone(hGH) affects many aspects of humandevelopment and metabolism including longitudinalgrowth, regulation (increase) of protein synthesis and lipolysis,and regulation (decrease) of glucose metabolism. Human Growth Hormone(hGH)has been used as a drug since the 1950s, and it has been extremelysuccessful in the treatment of classic growth hormonedeficiency, chronic renal insufficiency, Turner syndrome,failure to lactate in women, and Prader-Willisyndrome. In its long history, the hormone has been remarkablysuccessful and free of side effects.

Clinical Use

GHD is treated with purified and recombinant human GH. Recently, the effects on body composition, muscle mass and strength, exercise capacity, glucose and lipid profile, bone metabolism, and quality of life have been demonstrated in adult GHD. Acromegaly is treated with somatostatin analogs, dopamine antagonists, and GHR antagonists.

Side Effects

Carpal tunnel syndrome.
Increased insulin resistance.
Type 2 diabetes.
Swelling in the arms and legs (edema).
Joint and muscle pain.
For men, enlargement of breast tissue (gynecomastia).
Increased risk of certain cancers.