G-protein responses

G, is the G-protein responsible for inhibiting adenylate cyclase. The inhibition is mediated by the a subunit. Unlike Gs, G, is not affected by CTx but instead is ADP-ribosylated (and inhibited) by PTx. Of the three isoforms of G, (Gn 3), an is the most potent inhibitor of cyclase. G, also activates inward-rectifier (Kir3.1/3.2 and Kir 3.1/3.4) K+ channels (GIRK channels), and this activation is mediated by released f v subunits (see below). 

The G-protein that has been termed Gp, and that is linked to phospholipase C activation, may in fact be Gaj 2 or Gc. 3. Ga is designated as the G-protein responsible for activation of phospholipase A2, which results in arachidonic acid release. Some experimental evidence indicates that, at least in HL-60 cells, different agonists can preferentially activate different phospholipases, and some of these are responsible for the activation of secretion. In neutrophils, the two pertussis-toxin-sensitive Ga-proteins (Gaj-2 and G j 3) have been identified by peptide mapping of proteolytic digests of the proteins, by peptide sequencing and by immunoblotting. Complementary-DNA clones for the mRNA of these two molecules have also been isolated from an HL-60 cDNA library. Gai-2 is five to ten times more abundant than Gai.3, the former component comprising 3% of the total plasma membrane proteins. It is possible that these two different Ga-subunits are coupled to different phospholipases (e.g. phospholipases C and D). Pertussis toxin inhibits the secretion of O2 after stimulation of neutrophils by fMet-Leu-Phe, but pertussis-toxin-insensitive G-proteins are also present in neutrophils. These may be members of the Gq family and may be involved in the activation of phospholipase Cp (see 6.3.1). 

Earlier studies indicated that the G protein responsible for PLC-P activation was G, G or both G, and G (150). It was not possible to determine whether one or both ofthese G proteins was the precise mediator, since nearly all cells contain both Ga and Ga (126), and becattse it has been difficult to distinguish Ga from Ga by antisera, due to... 

There are potential roles that different isoforms of G-protein responsive PI-PLC might fill. One might be to provide a unique response in specific tissues or cells. It is possible that specific distribution of PI-PLC-p... 

Ruiz-Larrea, F. Berrie, CP. (1993). Characterization of a membrane-associated, receptor and G-protein responsive phosphoinositide-specific phospholipase C from avian erythrocytes. FEBS Lett., 328, 174-82. 

A critical component of the G-protein effector cascade is the hydrolysis of GTP by the activated a-subunit (GTPase). This provides not only a component of the amplification process of the G-protein cascade (63) but also serves to provide further measures of dmg efficacy. Additionally, the scheme of Figure 10 indicates that the coupling process also depends on the stoichiometry of receptors and G-proteins. A reduction in receptor number should diminish the efficacy of coupling and thus reduce dmg efficacy. This is seen in Figure 11, which indicates that the abiUty of the muscarinic dmg carbachol [51 -83-2] to inhibit cAMP formation and to stimulate inositol triphosphate, IP, formation yields different dose—response curves, and that after receptor removal by irreversible alkylation, carbachol becomes a partial agonist (68). 

Finally, some amphiphilic sweeteners, eg, aspartame, saccharin, and neohesperidin dihydrochalcone, have been shown to be capable of stimulating a purified G-protein direcdy in an in vitro assay (136). This suggests some sweeteners may be able to cross the plasma membrane and stimulate the G-protein without first binding to a receptor. This type of action could explain the relatively longer response times and the lingering of taste associated with many high potency sweeteners. 

G proteins are molecular amplifiers for a large number of seven-trans-membrane helix receptors that regulate responses like vision, smell and stress response. They are heterotrimeric molecules, Gap, that dissociate into membrane-bound Ga and Gpy signal transmitters upon activation of the receptor. 

As described in Section 3.13.6, the fraction p of G-protein-activating species (producing response)—... 

The extended ternary complex model can take into account the phenomenon of constitutive receptor activity. In genetically engineered systems where receptors can be expressed in high density, Costa and Herz [2] noted that high levels of receptor expression uncovered the existence of a population of spontaneously active receptors and that these receptors produce an elevated basal response in the system. The relevant factor is the ratio of receptors and G-proteins (i.e., elevated levels of receptor cannot yield constitutive activity in the absence of adequate amounts of G-protein, and vice versa). Constitutive activity (due to the [RaG] species) in the absence of ligand ([A] = 0) is expressed as... 

From this equation it can be seen that for a given receptor density systems can spontaneously produce physiological response and that this response is facilitated by high G-protein concentration, high-affinity receptor/ G-protein coupling (low value of KG), and/or a natural tendency for the receptor to spontaneously form the active state. This latter property is described by the magnitude of L, a thermodynamic constant unique for every receptor. 

The most probable mechanism for inverse agonism is the same one operable for positive agonism namely, selective receptor state affinity. However, unlike agonists that have a selectively higher affinity for the receptor active state (to induce G-protein activation and subsequent physiological response) inverse agonists have a selectively higher affinity for the inactive receptor state and thus uncouple already spontaneously coupled [RaG] species in the system. 

FIGURE 3.13 Major components of the cubic ternary complex model [25-27]. The major difference between this model and the extended ternary complex model is the potential for formation of the [ARjG] complex and the [RiG] complex, both receptor/ G-protein complexes that do not induce dissociation of G-protein subunits and subsequent response. Efficacy terms in this model are a, y, and 5. 

It is assumed that the receptor species leading to G-protein activation (and therefore physiological response) are complexes between the activated receptor ([RJ) and the G-protein namely, [ARaG] + [RaG], The fraction of the response-producing species of the total receptor species (([ARaG] + [RaG])/Rtot) is denoted p and is given by... 

FIGURE 5.3 Different types of functional readouts of agonism. Receptors need not mediate cellular response but may demonstrate behaviors such as internalization into the cytoplasm of the cell (mechanism 1). Receptors can also interact with membrane proteins such as G-proteins (mechanism 2) and produce cytosolic messenger molecules (mechanism 3), which can go on to mediate gene expression (mechanism 4). Receptors can also mediate changes in cellular metabolism (mechanism 5). 

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