Ghrelin is a novel hormone that possesses growth hormone (GH)–releasing, cardiovascular,
and metabolic activities. Ghrelin is a unique acylated polypeptide, and the naked peptide,
desacyl ghrelin, does not have the activity. This study examines plasma ghrelin
concentrations in 41 patients with mild to severe renal diseases. Two kinds of
radioimmunoassays were used: amino-terminal immunoreactivity represents ghrelin alone
(N-IR), and carboxyl-terminal immunoreactivity corresponds to the sum of both ghrelin and …