shadowyams t1_j44pu6c wrote
Reply to comment by MostCuriousExplorer in where does epinephrine comes from? The one used for people with allergies because Google only says It comes from glands so I don't understand if it's donated or sintethized by other means. by SALAMI_21
At least for insulin, which used to be harvested from pig and cow pancreases, the use of animal insulin caused allergic reactions in many diabetes patients. I’d assume there’d be similar immune problems with animal epinephrine.
propargyl t1_j44vama wrote
Insulin is a peptide hormone. The human insulin protein is composed of 51 amino acids, and has a molecular mass of 5808 Da.
Epinephrine is a small molecule, and has a molecular mass of 183 Da.
EmilyU1F984 t1_j4528z0 wrote
Nah, that‘s crap.
Insulin is a group of hormones. Not any specific molecule.
Epinephrine is a specific molecule.
There cannot physically be any immune problems, assuming it is pure, and any reaction would not be to the epinephrine but contaminants.
Insulin however is all peptides that work on insulin receptors in their specific animals.
Bovine insulin is physically different to human insulins. Three amino acids are completely different of the 51 that make up insulin.
And thus with bad luck, the immune system can detect it as foreign.
If you genetically engineered a cow to produce human insulin; the extracted insulin would not cause allergic reactions if sufficiently purified.
Class of drugs and specific molecules are the important point here.
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