RENIN

enzyme secreted by the kidney (and also, possibly, by the placenta) that breaks down protein and produces a rise in blood pressure. In the blood, renin acts on a fraction of the plasma proteins and releases angiotensin I. Angiotensin II is formed by the action of converting enzyme, which splits off two amino acids from the 10-amino-acid chain of angiotensin I. The resultant octapeptide (previously called hypertensin, or angiotonin) constricts arterioles, causing a rise in both systolic and diastolic blood pressure. It is one of the most active vasoconstrictors known; on a weight basis it is about six times as potent as norepinephrine. It also increases the secretion of cortisol and aldosterone by a direct action on the adrenal cortex.