Hannappel Ewald, Huff Thomas
Institute for Biochemistry/Faculty of Medicine, University of Erlangen-Nürnberg, 91054 Erlangen, Germany.
Vitam Horm. 2003;66:257-96. doi: 10.1016/s0083-6729(03)01007-0.
The studies on thymosins were initiated in 1965, when the group of A. White searched for thymic factors responsible for the physiological functions of thymus. To restore thymic functions in thymic-deprived or immunodeprived animals, as well as in humans with primary immuno-deficiency diseases and in immunosuppressed patients, a standardized extract from bovine thymus gland called thymosin fraction 5 was prepared. Thymosin fraction 5 indeed improved immune response. It turned out that thymosin fraction 5 consists of a mixture of small polypeptides. Later on, several of these peptides (polypeptide beta 1, thymosin alpha 1, prothymosin alpha, parathymosin, and thymosin beta 4) were isolated and tested for their biological activity. The research of many groups has indicated that none of the isolated peptides is really a thymic hormone; nevertheless, they are biologically important peptides with diverse intracellular and extracellular functions. Studies on these functions are still in progress. The current status of knowledge of structure and functions of the thymosins is discussed in this review.
关于胸腺素的研究始于1965年，当时A.怀特团队寻找负责胸腺生理功能的胸腺因子。为了恢复胸腺切除或免疫抑制动物以及原发性免疫缺陷疾病患者和免疫抑制患者的胸腺功能，制备了一种名为胸腺素组分5的标准化牛胸腺提取物。胸腺素组分5确实改善了免疫反应。结果表明，胸腺素组分5由小多肽混合物组成。后来，其中几种肽（多肽β1、胸腺素α1、前胸腺素α、旁胸腺素和胸腺素β4）被分离出来并测试其生物活性。许多团队的研究表明，分离出的肽都不是真正的胸腺激素；然而，它们是具有多种细胞内和细胞外功能的重要生物活性肽。对这些功能的研究仍在进行中。本文综述了胸腺素结构和功能的当前知识状态。
