Erythropoietin Hormone Podcast

Erythropoietin 

https://soundcloud.com/user605460877/erythropoietin-hormone

Here is my podcast on EPO

Hormone Podcast

Erythropoietin, also known as EPO, is a glycoprotein hormone that controls erythropoiesis, or red blood cell production. It is a protein signaling molecule for red blood cell precursors in the bone marrow. 

It is produced by interstitial fibroblasts in the kidney. It is also produced in perisinusoidal cells in the liver. While liver production predominates in the fetal and perinatal period, renal production is predominant during adulthood. In addition to erythropoiesis, erythropoietin also has other known biological functions. For example, it plays an important role in the brain's response to neuronal injury. EPO is also involved in the wound healing process.

Erythropoietin is an essential hormone for red cell production. Without it, definitive erythropoiesis does not take place. Under hypoxic conditions, the kidney will produce and secrete erythropoietin to increase the production of red blood cells by targeting CFU-E. Erythropoietin has its primary effect on red blood cell progenitors and precursors (which are found in the bone marrow in humans) by promoting their survival through protecting these cells from apoptosis. EPO is water soluble.

The burst-forming unit-erythroid (BFU-E) cells start erythropoietin receptor, encoded by the EPOR gene, expression and are sensitive to erythropoietin.

Erythropoietin levels in blood are quite low in the absence of anemia,  However, in hypoxic stress, EPO production greatly increases. EPO is produced mainly by peritubular capillary lining cells of the renal cortex, which are highly specialized, epithelial-like cells. It is synthesized by renal peritubular cells in adults, with a small amount being produced in the liver. Regulation is believed to rely on a feedback mechanism measuring blood oxygenation. Constitutively synthesized transcription factors for EPO, known as hypoxia-inducible factors , are hydroxylated and proteosomally digested in the presence of oxygen.

Works Cited

Erythropoietin, http://www.medicinenet.com/erythropoietin/article.htm

Erythropoietin Test, http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/ency/article/003683.htm