Hormonal & Sexual Health
CRH (Corticotropin-Releasing Hormone)
CRH (corticotropin-releasing hormone) is the first domino of the human stress response: forty-one amino acids released by the hypothalamus, which tell the pituitary to release adrenocorticotropic hormone, which tells the adrenal glands to make cortisol. It was characterised from rat hypothalamus in 1983, and the field that opened now runs to more than 47,000 papers, a third of them since 2020. Its clinical use is not treatment but interrogation: injected into a vein, it asks the pituitary and adrenal glands a question, and the shape of the answer helps separate the causes of Cushing's syndrome. The human record matches that use, holding registered studies and retrospective comparisons with no randomised trial of CRH as a therapy.
Last updated
Mechanism
Binds CRH receptor 1 on pituitary corticotrophs, driving ACTH release and downstream adrenal cortisol secretion.
Reported effects
What sources associate with this compound. Reported categories, not outcomes we have graded — each would need its own citation and rung.
- Cushing's diagnosis context
- HPA axis research
- Stress physiology research
Dosing on file unverified
1 µg/kg IV (max 100 µg) bolus over 30-60 sec; Human CRH: 33, 67, 100 µg IV
Carried from a source that labels it unverified, and reproduced with that label attached. A record of what is reported, not a recommendation. No citation on this page establishes it.
Literature on file 10
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animal in vivo
Characterization of rat hypothalamic corticotropin-releasing factor (1983, cited 184x) graded on: an animal model — “rat”
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review or editorial
Hypothesis on PTSD Pathophysiology: Role of CRH, Noradrenaline, and Glucocorticoid Receptors in an Amygdala-Centered Closed-Loop System. graded on: indexed as "Review" - secondary literature, not a study — “Review”
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review or editorial
Corticotropin-releasing factor-dependent synaptic plasticity in acute stress: From rapid signaling to circuit remodeling and allostatic load. graded on: indexed as "Review" - secondary literature, not a study — “Review”
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human observational
GH responsiveness to corticotropin-releasing hormone identifies corticotroph-like somatotroph adenomas in acromegaly. graded on: retrospective comparison, 22 responders vs 43 non-responders — read from the abstract — “abstract review”
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animal in vivo
CRH expression and function in mouse uterus during early pregnancy. graded on: an animal model — “mouse”
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animal in vivo
Vasopressin stimulation testing in hospitalized foals. graded on: prospective case-control in foals, 15 healthy vs 45 hospitalised — read from the abstract — “abstract review”
Not graded
4 citations whose study design could not be read from the title. Left ungraded rather than guessed at.
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not graded
NCT01673087: Stress Biomarkers:Attaching Biological Meaning to Field Friendly Salivary Measures graded on: NCT01673087 is completed and has posted no results - a registration, not a reported outcome — “NCT01673087”
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not graded
NCT00001180: Dose Response Relationship for Single Doses of Corticotropin Releasing Hormone (CRH) in Normal Volunteers and in Patients With Adrenal Insufficiency graded on: NCT00001180 is completed and has posted no results - a registration, not a reported outcome — “NCT00001180”
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not graded
NCT01984177: Effects of Corticorelin Administration on Dopamine Transmission, Craving, and Mood in Cocaine Dependence: A [11C]-(+)-PHNO PET Investigation graded on: NCT01984177 is completed and has posted no results - a registration, not a reported outcome — “NCT01984177”
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not graded
NCT00666068: Effects of CRH on the Sleep in Patients With Hypopituitarism graded on: NCT00666068 is completed and has posted no results - a registration, not a reported outcome — “NCT00666068”
Identity
- UniProt
- P06850 (precursor)
Notes unverified prose
Diagnostic (CRH stimulation test); Leeds Formulary
Not on file 9
8 of the 8 fields we track hold nothing on this record, and each says why. 1 further absence is named below. A blank field is a bug; a named absence is a finding.
- molecular weightnothing we hold supplies it
- molecular formulanothing we hold supplies it
- CAS registry numbernothing we hold supplies it
- PubChem identifiernothing we hold supplies it
- amino-acid sequencenothing we hold supplies it
- SMILES stringnothing we hold supplies it
- InChInothing we hold supplies it
- InChI keynothing we hold supplies it
- half-lifenothing we hold supplies it
Each field links to every other record missing the same thing. The full ledger holds 765 gaps across 163 records.