GPCRs

The authors also identified the most common structural motifs unique to ligands of individual classes of GPCRs such as the adrenergic, dopamine, histamine, muscarinic, and serotonin receptors as shown in Table 1. 

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Fig. 2. Schematic of the G-proteia coupled receptor (GPCR). The seven a-heUcal hydrophobic regions spanning the membrane are joined by extraceUular and iatraceUular loops. The amino terminal is located extraceUulady and the carboxy terminal iatraceUulady.

Acetylcholine. Acetylcholiae (ACh) (1) is a crystalliae material that is very soluble ia water and alcohol. ACh, synthesized by the enzyme choline acetyltransferase (3), iateracts with two main classes of receptor ia mammals muscarinic (mAChR), defiaed oa the basis of the agonist activity of the alkaloid muscarine (4), and nicotinic (nAChR), based on the agonist activity of nicotine (5) (Table 1). m AChRs are GPCRs (21) n AChRs are LGICs (22). 

Adenosine receptors are members of the P purinoceptor GPCR family and can be classified into four subtypes A, 3 ... 

Classification of P2 purinoceptors has been limited by a lack of potent, selective, and bioavailable antagonists. Nonetheless a rational scheme for P2 purinoceptor nomenclature divides P2 receptors into two superfamilies P2Y5 LGIC family having four subclasses and P2Y) a GPCR family having seven subclasses. A third receptor type, designated the P22) is a nonselective ion pore. 

BK actions are mediated through at least two types of GPCR B and B2. At the B receptor, des-Arg BK is more potent than BK. The converse is tme at the B2 receptor. The effects of BK are primarily mediated by activation of the B2 receptor because the B receptor has limited tissue distribution and is iaduced by noxious stimuli such as apamin or an inflammatory mediator-type response. The existence of a B receptor was suggested on the basis of limited efficacy of known antagonists ia some systems. A B receptor may also exist. The human B2 receptor has been cloned. 

Two ET GPCR subtypes, ET and ETg, have been cloned from human tissues. Both leceptois utilize IP /DAG for transduction. ET-1 and ET-2 have similai affinities for the ET subtype, whereas the affinity of ET-3 is much lower. All three peptides have similat affinities for the ETg subtype. Both receptor subtypes ate widely distributed, but ET receptors are more abundant in human heart, whereas ETg receptors constitute 70% of the ET receptors found in kidney. BQ 123 [136553-81 -6] cyclo-[D-Asp-Pro-D-Val-Leu-D-Trp], and ER 139317 (136) are selective ET antagonists. 

Opiates iateract with three principal classes of opioid GPCRs )J.-selective for the endorphiQS,5-selective for enkephalins, and K-selective for dynorphias (51). AU. three receptors have been cloned. Each inhibits adenylate cyclase, can activate potassium channels, and inhibit A/-type calcium channels. The classical opiates, morphine and its antagonists naloxone (144) and naltrexone (145), have moderate selectivity for the. -receptor. Pharmacological evidence suggests that there are two subtypes of the. -receptor and three subtypes each of the 5- and K-receptor. An s-opiate receptor may also exist. 

The prostanoids produce effects via five main subclasses of GPCR DP, EP, FP, IP, and TP (63). The EP receptor exists ia four subtypes,... 

Melatonin produces its effects via the GPCR, ML-1. A second lower affinity form, ML-2, has been described on the basis of binding data. Activation of melatonin receptors can inhibit DA release in the retina. 

SKIP produces its effects through two classes of GPCR, SRIF-1 and SRIF-2 that are structurally related to cloned opiate receptors. The agonists,... 

Three tachykinin GPCRs, NK, NK, and NK, have been identified and cloned. AH are coupled to phosphatidjhnositol hydrolysis. The NK receptor is selective for substance P (SP) and is relatively abundant in the brain, spinal cord, and peripheral tissues. The NK receptor is selective for NKA and is present in the gastrointestinal tract, urinary bladder, and adrenal gland but is low or absent in the CNS. The NIC receptor is selective for NKB and is present in low amounts in the gastrointestinal tract and urinary bladder, but is abundant in some areas of the CNS, ie, the spinal dorsal bom, soUtary nucleus, and laminae IV and V of the cortex with moderate amounts in the interpeduncular nucleus. Mismatches in the distribution of the tachykinins and tachykinin receptors suggest the possibility of additional tachykinin receptor subtypes. 

The effects of VIP and PACAP are mediated by three GPCR subtypes, VIP, VIP2, and PACAP receptor, coupled to the activation of adenjiate cyclase (54). The VIP subtype is localized ia the lung, Hver, and iatestiae, and the cortex, hippocampus, and olfactory bulb ia the CNS. The VIP2 receptor is most abundant ia the CNS, ia particular ia the thalamus, hippocampus, hypothalamus, and suprachiasmatic nucleus. PACAP receptors have a wide distribution ia the CNS with highest levels ia the olfactory bulb, the dentate gyms, and the cerebellum (84). The receptor is also present ia the pituitary. The VIP and PACAP receptors have been cloned. 

A classic example of where definitive experimental data necessitated refinement and extension of a model of drug-receptor interaction involved the discovery of constitutive receptor activity in GPCR systems. The state of the art model before this finding was the ternary complex model for GPCRs, a model that cannot accommodate ligand-independent (constitutive) receptor activity. 

With the experimental observation of constitutive activity for GPCRs by Costa and Herz [2], a modification was needed. Subsequently, Samama and colleagues [3] presented the extended ternary complex model to fill the void. This chapter discusses relevant mathematical models and generally offers a linkage between empirical measures of activity and molecular mechanisms. 

One target type for which the molecular mechanism of efficacy has been partly elucidated is the G-protein-coupled receptor (GPCR). It is known that activation of GPCRs leads to an interaction of the receptor with separate membrane G-proteins to cause dissociation of the G-protein subunits and subsequent activation of effectors (see Chapter 2). For the purposes of binding, this process can lead to an aberration in the binding reaction as perceived in experimental binding studies. Specifically, the activation of the receptor with subsequent binding of that... 

The majority of functional assays involve primary signaling. In the case of GPCRs, this involves activation of G-proteins. However, receptors have other behaviors— some of which can be monitored to detect ligand activity. For example, upon stimulation many receptors are desensitized through phosphorylation and subsequently taken into the cell and either recycled back to the cell surface or digested. This process can be monitored by observing ligand-mediated receptor internalization. For... 

FIGURE 7.5 Schematic diagram of a GPCR in a native conformation (black) and alios terically altered conformation (red). When these are superimposed upon each other it can be seen that more than one region of the receptor is altered upon allosteric modulation (see circled areas). 

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