Interdisciplinary Collaboration Explores Substance P in Health and Disease
A team of LACDR scientists from three different divisions (SPP, BT, MC) contributed to a book on "Substance P in Health and Disease," which will be published by Elsevier. The project was a collaboration with Hannover Medical School (Germany) and was coordinated by Alireza Mashaghi. Master students Ehsan Aslam and Asina Gijasi from the Medical Systems Biophysics and Bioengineering group jointly led the efforts. LACDR scientists Rob van Wijk, Anne-Grete Märtson, Gerard van Westen, Ilze Bot, and Laura Heitman contributed to this project.
Substance P (SP) is a neuropeptide that is mainly secreted by sensory nerve endings and exerts its effects by binding with high affinity to the neurokinin-1 receptor, which belongs to the G-protein coupled receptor family. Interestingly, SP is also secreted by immune cells and modulates the mobilization, activation, and proliferation of immune cells. In this book, the current knowledge on the immunological role of SP in cancer, infection, and autoimmunity, as well as recent advances in SP immunopharmacology, is presented.