The short version of prothymosin alpha fits in a sentence. The long version — which is the one that helps — is below.
This page was last updated on 2026-02-02 and is reviewed periodically as new material appears.
20世纪70年代，研究者从胸腺提取物中纯化出多种小肽，Tα1是其中被较早表征的一种。最初的制备依赖组织匀浆和层析步骤，产量低且成分复杂。随着固相肽合成技术成熟，实验室和工业界能够生产与天然序列一致的合成版本。合成肽的纯度可达95%以上，并可通过反相高效液相色谱和质谱进行鉴定。这一转变使研究不再依赖动物胸腺来源。
市售的胸腺素α1通常以冻干粉形式提供，溶解后用于注射。其氨基酸组成包括多个酸性残基，因此在中性pH下带负电荷。该肽可溶于水和生理盐水，但在有机溶剂中溶解度有限。储存条件通常为冻干状态下负20摄氏度，溶解后需冷藏并避免反复冻融。常见的同义词包括胸腺肽α1、thymalfasin和Tα1。
Reverse-phase high-performance liquid chromatography is the standard technique for assessing purity and concentration, because the peptide's hydrophobicity allows clean separation from related impurities. Mass spectrometry confirms molecular identity and detects sequence errors or truncations. Amino acid analysis and peptide mapping supply additional structural confirmation when required. Chromatographic purity values reported on certificates of analysis describe the proportion of the main peak and do not by themselves establish biological activity.
Like most short peptides, thymosin alpha-1 is susceptible to hydrolysis under strongly acidic or basic conditions and to oxidation when exposed to air over long periods. The acetylated amino terminus blocks one common degradation route, which contributes to the molecule's relative robustness in solution. Lyophilized material generally retains potency for extended periods when kept cold and dry. Once reconstituted, aqueous solutions are less stable and are typically used within a defined window rather than held indefinitely at ambient temperature.
| Property | Value | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| 化学分类 | 线性肽 | 由28个氨基酸组成 |
| 分子量 | 约3108 Da | 合成版本一致 |
| 外观 | 白色至类白色粉末 | 冻干品 |
| 溶解度 | 易溶于水 | 微溶于有机溶剂 |
| 储存温度 | -20°C（冻干） | 溶解后2-8°C |
Whether the free 28-residue peptide circulates in human tissue remains debated. The best-documented human source is prothymosin alpha, a larger acidic protein that carries the sequence at its N-terminus. Reports of measurable peptide levels in serum and lymphoid tissue exist, yet some of that signal may come from cross-reacting fragments or from the parent protein. Most reviews therefore treat prothymosin alpha as the established human molecule and describe independent circulation of the small peptide as an unresolved question.
Immunological studies connect the peptide to multiple parts of the immune response. It has been reported to engage Toll-like receptor signaling, to promote dendritic cell maturation, and to influence the balance of T helper cell subsets. Changes in natural killer cell activity and in cytokine release appear in cell culture and animal models. These observations describe broad immunomodulatory behavior rather than a single defined receptor target, and the primary molecular interaction has not been settled.
Thymosin alpha 1 is a 28-amino-acid peptide first isolated from thymosin fraction 5, a bovine thymic extract. Its sequence begins with an acetylated serine residue and carries a high proportion of acidic residues, so the molecule has a net negative charge near neutral pH. Despite the shared name, it is unrelated in sequence to the thymosin beta family. Synthetic material prepared by solid-phase peptide synthesis is identical in sequence to the natural peptide.
Several names appear in the literature for this peptide, including thymalfasin and the abbreviation T-alpha-1. Naming conventions differ among research articles, regulatory documents, and supplier catalogs, which complicates literature searches. Both synthetic and recombinant production routes yield a peptide with the same 28-residue sequence as the thymic isolate. Because the thymosin label also covers unrelated peptides, sources should be compared by sequence rather than by name alone.
Within the immune system, the peptide acts on several cell types rather than a single target. Reported activities include promotion of T-cell maturation, enhancement of natural killer cell activity, and modulation of cytokine production by dendritic cells and macrophages. Some of these effects appear to operate through toll-like receptor signaling, though the precise receptor-level mechanism remains debated. Whether the observed immune changes translate into clinical benefit is a separate question and depends on the indication studied.
The peptide was described in the 1970s as a component of thymic extracts, and early research focused on restoring immune function in immunodeficiency states. A synthetic version entered clinical development in the 1980s and is approved as a drug in several countries for conditions such as chronic hepatitis B and certain immunodeficiencies. Approval status varies widely by jurisdiction, and in the United States it is not an approved therapeutic. Regulatory and clinical positions differ, so statements about efficacy should be tied to specific indications and studies.
Thymosin alpha-1 is a synthetic peptide of 28 amino acids, corresponding to the N-terminal fragment of prothymosin alpha. Its sequence begins with acetylation at the N-terminus, a modification that affects stability and receptor interaction. The peptide is acidic, with a calculated isoelectric point near 4.2, and carries no disulfide bonds, so its secondary structure is largely flexible in solution. Molecular mass is approximately 3108 daltons. The native form was first isolated from bovine thymus tissue, while pharmaceutical material is produced by solid-phase peptide synthesis.
In 1881, the Savoy Theatre in the City of Westminster, London was lit by Swan incandescent lightbulbs, which was the first theatre, and the first public building in the world, to be lit entirely by electricity. The first street in the world to be lit by incandescent lamps was Mosley Street, Newcastle upon Tyne, United Kingdom in 1880.
On the weekend of September 23–25, 2022, a delegation of the Grand Lodge of Veracruz, from Veracruz, Veracruz, traveled to Havana, where the Grand Lodge of Cuba recognized that body as "regular and correct" in a ceremony at the National Temple. Grand Master Alfonso Vidal, with the Grand Commander of the Supreme Council of Cuba, José Ramón Viñas Alonso, presented certificates of friendship and recognition to the Mexican delegation. In what was called an act of fraternal friendship, the Grand Lodge of Veracruz invited the Grand Master Alfonso Vidal to tour their Grand Lodge in Mexico and participate in a Masonic ceremony there. On December 5, 2022, the National Temple hosted the 163rd anniversary celebration of the founding of the Grand Lodge of Colon in 1859. Grand Orator Luis Steve Ocaña guided the congregation through the history of Cuban Freemasonry since the 19th century, and told the congregation of hundreds of Freemasons in his liturgy that: "Today, the fight for the homeland is with the most important weapon that Freemasons carry, which is the most lofty thought with which we must act to stop seeing everywhere the lament of the loss of values in society.... I believe that we masons should talk about politics, since it is the fundamental rule that governs society, we must talk and, in addition, look for a way to do politics." Days later, Alfonso Vidal was interrogated again by Agent Poll from the State Security Unit. This interrogation lasted for twelve hours.
== Cultural analogues == Akira Kurosawa's 1948 film Drunken Angel centers upon the efforts of Doctor Sanada, himself an alcoholic, to sustain a young gangster against tuberculosis, counseling him to abandon his self-destructive lifestyle. The character Dr. House, from the television series of the same name, can be considered as an example of this archetype in modern pop culture; his physical and emotional scars are both a burden and a driving force in his need to fix the problems of others while destroying himself. In East Coker, T. S. Eliot wrote "The wounded surgeon plies the steel/That questions the distempered part".
Buffalo meat makes up 86% of India's total meat exports, earning INR 26,000 crore (US$4 billion) in 2013–14. CIRB makes high-quality semen available for buffalo breeding at a very low cost to India's farmers. Semen and buffaloes, particularly the Murrah buffalo, are exported to other nations worldwide for the improvement of the breed. In January 2019, Haryana has 3,600,000 cattle (2,100,00 buffaloes and 1,500,000 cows) and state govt is making efforts to raise the average daily production to 10 liter per milch animal from the existing 6.8 liter, which compares poorly to global best practices such as 15 litres in Australia, 16 litres in New Zealand and 30 litres in Israel. MoU have been signed with Brazil to improve the cattle breed through Embryo transfer technique and another with Israel for milk production through genetic engineering, cattle feed improvement, cold chain and other technologies.
=== Phototherapy === Phototherapy is considered a second-line treatment for vitiligo. Due to the higher risks of skin cancer with ultraviolet A (UVA) light, the United Kingdom's National Health Service suggests that it be used only if primary treatments are ineffective. The risk of skin cancer with UVB is unclear and commercially available lamps are not regulated, but 311 nm is considered the most effective wavelength, with the combined intake of antioxidant supplements believed to suppress oxidative stress. UVA treatments are normally carried out in a hospital clinic. Psoralen and ultraviolet A light (PUVA) treatment involves taking a drug that increases the skin's sensitivity to ultraviolet light and then exposing the skin to high doses of UVA light. Treatment is required twice a week for 6–12 months or longer. Due to the high doses of UVA and psoralen, PUVA may cause side effects such as sunburn-type reactions or skin freckling. Broadband ultraviolet B therapy is given three times a week. Narrowband ultraviolet B (NBUVB) phototherapy lacks the side effects caused by psoralens and is as effective as PUVA. Treatment is carried out 2–3 times weekly in a clinic. Longer treatment is often recommended over at least 6 months. The most effective responses are on the face and neck. Topical calcineurin inhibitors plus phototherapy produces better results than phototherapy alone, hydrocortisone plus laser light is better than laser light alone, ginkgo biloba is better than placebo, and oral mini-pulse of prednisolone (OMP) plus NB-UVB is better than OMP alone.
Sources: en.wikipedia.org
== Clinical significance == Human HGF plasmid DNA therapy of cardiomyocytes is being examined as a potential treatment for coronary artery disease as well as treatment for the damage that occurs to the heart after myocardial infarction. As well as the well-characterised effects of HGF on epithelial cells, endothelial cells and haemopoietic progenitor cells, HGF also regulates the chemotaxis of T cells into heart tissue. Binding of HGF by c-Met, expressed on T cells, causes the upregulation of c-Met, CXCR3, and CCR4 which in turn imbues them with the ability to migrate into heart tissue. HGF also promotes angiogenesis in ischemia injury. HGF may further play a role as an indicator for prognosis of chronicity for Chikungunya virus induced arthralgia. High HGF levels correlate with high rates of recovery. Excessive local expression of HGF in the breasts has been implicated in macromastia. HGF is also importantly involved in normal mammary gland development. HGF has been implicated in a variety of cancers, including of the lungs, pancreas, thyroid, colon, and breast. Increased expression of HGF has been associated with the enhanced and scarless wound healing capabilities of fibroblast cells isolated from the oral mucosa tissue.
Most such markets do not trade in wild or exotic animals, but some that do have been linked to outbreaks of zoonotic diseases including COVID-19, H5N1 avian flu, severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS), and mpox. Several countries have banned markets from holding wildlife. Media reports that fail to distinguish between food markets generally and those with live animals or wildlife, as well as insinuations of fostering wildlife smuggling, have been blamed for fueling Sinophobia related to the COVID-19 pandemic.
=== Juice content === The juice content of the plant varies depending on the age of the plant, since younger plants contain more juice than older ones. The plant provides the least juice after seed maturation because the leaves have already begun decay at that point. Depending on the kind of press used, the amount of resulting juice varies significantly. On average, 50% of the weight of the plant is obtained as juice. The water to dry matter ratio of the juice shows high dry matter content in the upper part of the plant, and is lowest in the leaves when the seeds are ripe. The dry matter content is medium in the fibers and lowest in the shives. The relatively high content of dry matter implies a high percentage of substance components such as carbohydrates, amino acids, protein, fat, cannabinoids, polyphenols, as well as other substrates.
Wallerian degeneration is an active process of degeneration that results when a nerve fiber is cut or crushed and the part of the axon distal to the injury (which in most cases is farther from the neuron's cell body) degenerates. A related process of dying back or retrograde degeneration known as 'Wallerian-like degeneration' occurs in many neurodegenerative diseases, especially those where axonal transport is impaired such as amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) and Alzheimer's disease. Primary culture studies suggest that a failure to deliver sufficient quantities of the essential axonal protein NMNAT2 is a key initiating event. Some studies also have found irreversible electroporation, a potential clinical treatment being researched in porcine models to determine efficacy to treat spinal cord injuries, has contributed to Wallerian degeneration of lumbar nerve roots. Wallerian degeneration occurs after axonal injury in both the peripheral nervous system (PNS) and central nervous system (CNS). It occurs in the section of the axon distal to the site of injury and usually begins within 24–36 hours of a lesion. Prior to degeneration, the distal section of the axon tends to remain electrically excitable. After injury, the axonal skeleton disintegrates, and the axonal membrane breaks apart. Axonal degeneration is followed by degradation of the myelin sheath and infiltration by macrophages. The macrophages, accompanied by Schwann cells, serve to clear the debris from the degeneration.
Sources: en.wikipedia.org
LEDs have many advantages over incandescent light sources, including lower power consumption, reduced waste heat, a longer lifetime, improved physical robustness, smaller sizes, and faster switching. In exchange for these generally favorable attributes, disadvantages of LEDs include electrical limitations to low voltage and generally to DC (not AC) power, the inability to provide steady illumination from a pulsing DC or an AC electrical supply source, and a lesser maximum operating temperature and storage temperature. LEDs are transducers of electricity into light.
== Disease relevance == Along with the ribosome, EF-Tu is one of the most important targets for antibiotic-mediated inhibition of translation. Antibiotics targeting EF-Tu can be categorized into one of two groups, depending on the mechanism of action, and one of four structural families. The first group includes the antibiotics pulvomycin and GE2270A, and inhibits the formation of the ternary complex. The second group includes the antibiotics kirromycin and enacyloxin, and prevents the release of EF-Tu from the ribosome after GTP hydrolysis.
=== Choice of ionization source === APCI generally suffers less ion suppression than ESI, as discussed previously. Where possible, if ion suppression is unavoidable it may be advisable to switch from ESI to APCI. If this is not possible, it may be useful to switch the ESI ionisation mode from positive to negative. Since fewer compounds are ionisable in negative ionisation mode, it is entirely possible that the ion suppressing species may be removed from the analysis. However, it should also be considered that the analyte of interest may not be ionised effectively in negative mode either, rendering this approach useless.
Sources: en.wikipedia.org
它不是经典的内分泌激素，而是一种免疫调节肽。其作用主要通过局部免疫细胞间的信号传递实现，而非经血液循环作用于远隔器官。
天然胸腺素α1主要从胸腺组织提取，也可在脾脏和淋巴结中检出。目前研究和临床使用的多为化学合成版本，不再依赖动物组织。
胸腺素组分5是牛胸腺提取物的粗组分，包含多种肽。胸腺素α1是其中一种被纯化和表征的单一肽，具有明确的28个氨基酸序列。
The lyophilized solid is normally held at 2 to 8 °C in a sealed, light-protected container. Dry storage limits both hydrolysis and microbial growth. Material kept this way remains stable for the shelf life stated by the supplier.