Differences in the enzymatic inactivation of arginine vasopressin and oxytocin by rat kidney homogenate.

Arginine-vasopressin and oxytocin, both 14C-labeled in the glycine residue, are enzymatically inactivated by rat kidney supernatant. Production of radioactive metabolites of each hormone was followed as a function of time. Both oxytocin and vasopressin are degraded by an enzyme which cleaves their Pro-X bonds, to release Leu-Gly-NH2 from oxytocin and Arg-Gly-NH2 from vasopressin. In addition, oxytocin alone is degraded rapidly by a chymotrypsin-like enzyme which directly releases Gly-NH2 from the hormone. The direct release of Gly-NH2 from vasopressin in the homogenate is of minor importance, but there occurs a transient formation of an uncharacterized fragment in significant amounts. The data are interpreted to indicate that the difference in the overall mechanism of inactivation of the two hormones by the rat kidney extract is a result of the high level of the enzymic activity which releases Gly-NH2 directly from oxytocin, compared to the low level of activity releasing Gly-NH2 directly from the antidiuretic hormone. This allows, in the case of arginine vasopressin, a greater expression of the activity of enzyme(s) giving rise to uncharacterized fragment(s) and of the Pro-X cleaving enzyme.