Prostaglandin
A prostaglandin is any member of a group of lipid compounds that are derived from fatty acids and have important functions in the animal body. Every prostaglandin contains 20 carbon atoms, including a 5-carbon ring. They are mediators and have a variety of strong physiological effects; although they are technically hormones, they are rarely classified as such.
Secretion and Production
Prostaglandins are found in virtually all tissues and organs. These are autocrine and paracrine lipid mediators that act upon platelet, endothelium, uterine and mast cells, among others. They are synthesized in the cell from the essential fatty acids.
Prostaglandins act on a variety of cells such as vascular smooth muscle cells causing constriction or dilation, on platelets causing aggregation or disaggregation and on spinal neurons causing pain. Prostaglandins have a wide variety of actions, including, but not limited to muscular constriction and mediate inflammation. Other effects include calcium movement, hormone regulation and cell growth control. Thromboxane is created in platelets and causes vascular constriction and platelet aggregation.
Pharmacological Uses
Synthetic prostaglandin is used for many purposes. It is used to induce childbirth, parturition, and abortion, to prevent closure of ductus arteriosus in newborns with particular cyanotic heart defects, and to prevent and treat peptic ulcers. It is used as a vasodilator in severe Reynaud’s phenomenon or ischemia of a limb, in pulmonary hypertension, and in treatment of glaucoma. Additionally, synthetic prostaglandin is commonly used to treat erectile dysfunction or in penile rehabilitation following surgery.