Liver Expressed Antimicrobial Peptide 2 (LEAP2)

LEAP2 shares the structural features of positively charged amino acid residues and multiple disulfides with other antimicrobial peptides such as the defensins and LEAP1/hepcidin (HAMP). Northern blot analysis detected multiple LEAP2 transcripts in human liver and kidney, with possible faint expression in other tissues. Real-time quantitative RT-PCR specific for the major LEAP2 transcript (LEAP2-350) and an intron-1 retaining transcript (LEAP2-550) detected tissue-specific expression. The highest expression of LEAP2-350 was found in liver, kidney, jejunum, and duodenum, with lower expression in antrum, brain, bladder, testis, heart, lung, and colon, and very low expression in other tissues examined. The highest expression of LEAP2-550 was found in kidney, followed by brain, liver, heart, and lung,