Active Polypeptides in Korean Amphibian Skin Extracts

한국산 양서류피부의 생물학적활성물질에 관한 검색

The effect of skin extracts of Korean amphibian, poisonous snake and fresh-water fish were determined for their caerulein-like action on rabbit gall bladder strips. The isolated gall bladder strips were prepared according to the technique described by Amer and Becvar(1969). The strips were placed in a bath containing 100ml of Locke-Ringer solution maintained at $38^{\circ}C$. Oxygen was continuously bubbled through the solution. The tension of the muscle strip was initially adjusted to 0.7g. The contractile response was measured isometrically by a force-displacement transducer connected to a polygraph. In this rabbit gall bladder strip caerulein produced contraction of CCK-PZ type. The skin extract of Korean amphibian also elicited similar contraction as caerulein, which extracted from Australian amphibian, Hyla caerulea, by Erspamer et al. The calculated amount was approximately $2{\mu}g$ caerulein per gram of skin tissue in Korean amphibian and the potency was about 1/200 of that seen in Australian amphibian. The contraction of gall bladder strip by our amphibians occurs in decreasing order; Rana Nigromaculata coreana Okada, Rana nigromaculata Hallowell, Hyla arborea japonica Gunther and Bombina orientalis Boulenger. The skin extracts of poisonous snake and fresh-water fish produced no caerulein-like activity.