Signalling Alterations in Bones of Pituitary Adenylate Cyclase Activating Polypeptide (PACAP) Gene Deficient Mice.

Pituitary adenylate cyclase activating polypeptide (PACAP) is a neuropeptide with diverse developmental roles, including differentiation of skeletal elements. It is a positive regulatory factor of chondrogenesis and osteogenic differentiation in vitro, but little is known about its role in bone formation. In our experiments, diaphyses of long bones from hind limbs of PACAP gene-deficient mice showed changes in thickness and increased staining intensity.