Human Growth Hormone in Biotechnology

Human growth hormone (GH), also known as somatotrophin, is a protein consisting of 191 amino acids with a molecular weight of ~22,000. Growth hormone is secreted by the pituitary gland, which stimulates growth and cell reproduction. The structure is made up of four helices, which are necessary for functional interaction with the GH receptor. Despite remarkable structural similarities between GH from different species, only human and primate GH may be active in humans.

History of Human Growth Hormone

Growth hormone was first purified from pig and cow pancreas for treatment of type 1 diabetes since the 1920's. However, these types of GH did not function as well in humans, due to greater variation of molecular structure compared to human GH. In 1958, Maurice Raben purified enough GH from human pituitary glands to successfully treat a GH-deficient boy (Raben). In 1960, the National Pituitary Agency was...
[ View Full Essay]