A novel peptide in the calcitonin gene related peptide family as an amyloid fibril protein in the endocrine pancreas

Abstract

Deposition of amyloid is the most constantly present alteration in the islets of Langerhans in type 2 diabetes mellitus and is also quite common in insulin-producing tumors of the pancreas and it is very likely that these two amyloids are identical. We have isolated amyloid fibrils from an insulin-secreting human tumour and purified the fibrillar protein. N-terminal amino acid sequence of the protein is unique and does not resemble insulin or its precursors. Instead it has about 50% homology with the neuropeptide CGRP (calcitonin gene related peptide).