Description
Inhibins are dimeric peptide hormones produced by female ovarian granulose cells and male Sertoli cells as well as a variety of other tissues. Inhibins have two isoforms, A and B, with the same alpha subunit but different beta subunits. Inhibin A is a dimer of alpha and beta A subunits, inhibin B is a dimer of alpha and beta B subunits. Inhibins are thought to inhibit the production of follicle-stimulating hormone (FSH) by the pituitary gland. In addition, Inhibins are also thought to play a role in the control of gametogenesis, and embryonic and fetal development. Human recombinant Inhibin-alpha produced in E. coli is a non-glycosylated, polypeptide chain of 264 amino acids comprising both A and B chains and having a molecular mass of 33.5 kDa. The Inhibin-alpha is fused with an amino-terminal hexahistidine tag and has been purified by standard chromatographic techniques