Metamorphosin A is a neuropeptide

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Abstract
A novel biologically active peptide (metamorphosin A, MMA, pEQPGLW.NH2) has recently been described. It was isolated from Anthopleura elegantissima and triggers metamorphosis in Hydractinia echinata. Antibodies directed against the C-terminal part of the molecule immunohistochemically stain neurosensory cells and processes in the anterior part of larvae of H. echinata. We assume that in metamorphosis MMA (or a closely related LW-amide) is an internal signal transmitted from the anterior to the posterior body parts. Immunoreactivity is also found in ectodermal nerve processes — but not cell bodies — in the tentacles and in the basal disk of the foot of Hydra magnipapillata. This is, to our knowledge, the first report of LW-amide(s) as (a) neuropeptide(s).