Apelin - a potential target in the diagnosis and treatment of the diseases of civilization

摘要

Objective Apelin is a novel peptide of a wide expression in the human body and with multiple biological functions. It was first isolated and described in 1998 by Tatemoto et al. It exerts its biological functions by acting on a transmembrane G protein-coupled APJ receptor. Together with its receptor APJ apelin is referred to as an apelinergic system, which in the recent years has gained the interest of many researchers due to its role in many different processes regarding homeostasis, physiology and pathophysiology in the human body.