scholarly journals β2-adrenoceptor ligand efficacy is tuned by a two-stage interaction with the Gαs C terminus

2021 ◽  
Vol 118 (11) ◽  
pp. e2017201118
Author(s):  
Keehun Kim ◽  
Shayla Paulekas ◽  
Fredrik Sadler ◽  
Tejas M. Gupte ◽  
Michael Ritt ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
G Protein ◽  
Dynamic Range ◽  
Receptor Activation ◽  
Activation Mechanism ◽  
Two Stage ◽  
Protein Activation ◽  
Intrinsic Efficacy ◽  
C Terminus ◽  
G Protein Activation ◽  
Structural Determinant

Classical pharmacological models have incorporated an “intrinsic efficacy” parameter to capture system-independent effects of G protein–coupled receptor (GPCR) ligands. However, the nonlinear serial amplification of downstream signaling limits quantitation of ligand intrinsic efficacy. A recent biophysical study has characterized a ligand “molecular efficacy” that quantifies the influence of ligand-dependent receptor conformation on G protein activation. Nonetheless, the structural translation of ligand molecular efficacy into G protein activation remains unclear and forms the focus of this study. We first establish a robust, accessible, and sensitive assay to probe GPCR interaction with G protein and the Gα C terminus (G-peptide), an established structural determinant of G protein selectivity. We circumvent the need for extensive purification protocols by the single-step incorporation of receptor and G protein elements into giant plasma membrane vesicles (GPMVs). We use previously established SPASM FRET sensors to control the stoichiometry and effective concentration of receptor–G protein interactions. We demonstrate that GPMV-incorporated sensors (v-SPASM sensors) provide enhanced dynamic range, expression-insensitive readout, and a reagent level assay that yields single point measurements of ligand molecular efficacy. Leveraging this technology, we establish the receptor–G-peptide interaction as a sufficient structural determinant of this receptor-level parameter. Combining v-SPASM measurements with molecular dynamics (MD) simulations, we elucidate a two-stage receptor activation mechanism, wherein receptor–G-peptide interactions in an intermediate orientation alter the receptor conformational landscape to facilitate engagement of a fully coupled orientation that tunes G protein activation.

scholarly journals Novel fluorescent GPCR biosensor detects retinal equilibrium binding to opsin and active G protein and arrestin signaling conformations

2020 ◽  
Vol 295 (51) ◽  
pp. 17486-17496
Author(s):  
Christopher T. Schafer ◽  
Anthony Shumate ◽  
David L. Farrens
Keyword(s):  
G Protein ◽  
Protein Activation ◽  
Canonical Class ◽  
Equilibrium Binding ◽  
C Terminus ◽  
G Protein Activation ◽  
Ligand Discovery ◽  
Pharmaceutical Agents ◽  
G Protein Coupled ◽  
Covalently Bound

Rhodopsin is a canonical class A photosensitive G protein–coupled receptor (GPCR), yet relatively few pharmaceutical agents targeting this visual receptor have been identified, in part due to the unique characteristics of its light-sensitive, covalently bound retinal ligands. Rhodopsin becomes activated when light isomerizes 11-cis-retinal into an agonist, all-trans-retinal (ATR), which enables the receptor to activate its G protein. We have previously demonstrated that, despite being covalently bound, ATR can display properties of equilibrium binding, yet how this is accomplished is unknown. Here, we describe a new approach for both identifying compounds that can activate and attenuate rhodopsin and testing the hypothesis that opsin binds retinal in equilibrium. Our method uses opsin-based fluorescent sensors, which directly report the formation of active receptor conformations by detecting the binding of G protein or arrestin fragments that have been fused onto the receptor's C terminus. We show that these biosensors can be used to monitor equilibrium binding of the agonist, ATR, as well as the noncovalent binding of β-ionone, an antagonist for G protein activation. Finally, we use these novel biosensors to observe ATR release from an activated, unlabeled receptor and its subsequent transfer to the sensor in real time. Taken together, these data support the retinal equilibrium binding hypothesis. The approach we describe should prove directly translatable to other GPCRs, providing a new tool for ligand discovery and mutant characterization.

scholarly journals Low intrinsic efficacy for G protein activation can explain the improved side effect profiles of new opioid agonists

2020 ◽  
Vol 13 (625) ◽  
pp. eaaz3140 ◽  
Author(s):  
Alexander Gillis ◽  
Arisbel B. Gondin ◽  
Andrea Kliewer ◽  
Julie Sanchez ◽  
Herman D. Lim ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
G Protein ◽  
Side Effect ◽  
Opioid Analgesics ◽  
Receptor Activation ◽  
Alternative Mechanism ◽  
Protein Activation ◽  
Biased Agonism ◽  
Opioid Ligands ◽  
Intrinsic Efficacy ◽  
Respiratory Depressant

Biased agonism at G protein–coupled receptors describes the phenomenon whereby some drugs can activate some downstream signaling activities to the relative exclusion of others. Descriptions of biased agonism focusing on the differential engagement of G proteins versus β-arrestins are commonly limited by the small response windows obtained in pathways that are not amplified or are less effectively coupled to receptor engagement, such as β-arrestin recruitment. At the μ-opioid receptor (MOR), G protein–biased ligands have been proposed to induce less constipation and respiratory depressant side effects than opioids commonly used to treat pain. However, it is unclear whether these improved safety profiles are due to a reduction in β-arrestin–mediated signaling or, alternatively, to their low intrinsic efficacy in all signaling pathways. Here, we systematically evaluated the most recent and promising MOR-biased ligands and assessed their pharmacological profile against existing opioid analgesics in assays not confounded by limited signal windows. We found that oliceridine, PZM21, and SR-17018 had low intrinsic efficacy. We also demonstrated a strong correlation between measures of efficacy for receptor activation, G protein coupling, and β-arrestin recruitment for all tested ligands. By measuring the antinociceptive and respiratory depressant effects of these ligands, we showed that the low intrinsic efficacy of opioid ligands can explain an improved side effect profile. Our results suggest a possible alternative mechanism underlying the improved therapeutic windows described for new opioid ligands, which should be taken into account for future descriptions of ligand action at this important therapeutic target.

scholarly journals Selective Interactions between Helix VIII of the Human μ-Opioid Receptors and the C Terminus of Periplakin Disrupt G Protein Activation

2003 ◽  
Vol 278 (35) ◽  
pp. 33400-33407 ◽  
Author(s):  
Giu-Jie Feng ◽  
Elaine Kellett ◽  
Carol A. Scorer ◽  
Jonathan Wilde ◽  
Julia H. White ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
G Protein ◽  
Opioid Receptors ◽  
Protein Activation ◽  
C Terminus ◽  
G Protein Activation ◽  
Μ Opioid Receptors ◽  
Selective Interactions

scholarly journals Agonist-induced formation of unproductive receptor-G12complexes

2020 ◽  
Vol 117 (35) ◽  
pp. 21723-21730
Author(s):  
Najeah Okashah ◽  
Shane C. Wright ◽  
Kouki Kawakami ◽  
Signe Mathiasen ◽  
Joris Zhou ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
G Protein ◽  
G Proteins ◽  
Resonance Energy Transfer ◽  
Resonance Energy ◽  
Receptor Activation ◽  
Receptor Internalization ◽  
Protein Association ◽  
Protein Activation ◽  
Protein Receptor ◽  
G Protein Activation

G proteins are activated when they associate with G protein-coupled receptors (GPCRs), often in response to agonist-mediated receptor activation. It is generally thought that agonist-induced receptor-G protein association necessarily promotes G protein activation and, conversely, that activated GPCRs do not interact with G proteins that they do not activate. Here we show that GPCRs can form agonist-dependent complexes with G proteins that they do not activate. Using cell-based bioluminescence resonance energy transfer (BRET) and luminescence assays we find that vasopressin V2receptors (V2R) associate with both Gsand G12heterotrimers when stimulated with the agonist arginine vasopressin (AVP). However, unlike V2R-Gscomplexes, V2R-G12complexes are not destabilized by guanine nucleotides and do not promote G12activation. Activating V2R does not lead to signaling responses downstream of G12activation, but instead inhibits basal G12-mediated signaling, presumably by sequestering G12heterotrimers. Overexpressing G12inhibits G protein receptor kinase (GRK) and arrestin recruitment to V2R and receptor internalization. Formyl peptide (FPR1 and FPR2) and Smoothened (Smo) receptors also form complexes with G12that are insensitive to nucleotides, suggesting that unproductive GPCR-G12complexes are not unique to V2R. These results indicate that agonist-dependent receptor-G protein association does not always lead to G protein activation and may in fact inhibit G protein activation.

scholarly journals 1Q1512 G protein activation mechanism by activated rhodopsin(Photobiology: Vision & Photoreception 1,The 49th Annual Meeting of the Biophysical Society of Japan)

2011 ◽  
Vol 51 (supplement) ◽  
pp. S70-S71
Author(s):  
Naoki Kimata ◽  
Takahiro Yamashita ◽  
Takesi Matsuyama Hoyos ◽  
Yasushi Imamoto ◽  
Yoshinori Shichida
Keyword(s):  
Annual Meeting ◽  
G Protein ◽  
Activation Mechanism ◽  
Protein Activation ◽  
G Protein Activation ◽  
Biophysical Society

scholarly journals Re-evaluating how low intrinsic efficacy and apparent bias for G protein activation relates to the improved side effect profiles of new opioid agonists

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Edward L. Stahl ◽  
Laura M. Bohn
Keyword(s):  
G Protein ◽  
Therapeutic Window ◽  
G Protein Signaling ◽  
Protein Signaling ◽  
Protein Activation ◽  
Biased Agonism ◽  
Intrinsic Efficacy ◽  
Cellular Environment ◽  
G Protein Activation ◽  
G Protein Coupled

AbstractIn a recent report by Gillis et al., 2020 (1), it was suggested that low intrinsic agonism, and not biased agonism, leads to an improvement in the separation of potency in opioid-induced respiratory suppression versus antinociception. Although the compounds that were tested have been shown to display G protein signaling bias in prior publications, the authors conclude that since they cannot detect biased agonism in their cellular signaling studies the compounds are therefore not biased agonists. Rather, they conclude that it is low intrinsic efficacy that leads to the therapeutic window improvement. Intrinsic efficacy is the extent to which an agonist can stimulate a G protein-coupled receptor (GPCR) response in a system. The designation of full agonist is made to compounds that produce the highest observable activation in a system (maximum intrinsic efficacy); agonists producing some fraction of that response are considered partial agonists. The maximum response window is determined by the cellular environment, receptor and effector expression levels, and the amplification readout of the system. Biased agonism takes into consideration not only intrinsic efficacy, but also potency (concentration required to reach half maximal efficacy) of an agonist in an assay. Herein, the data published in the aforementioned manuscript was used to rederive the intrinsic efficacy and bias factors as ΔΔlog(τ/KA) and ΔΔlog(Emax/EC50). Based on this reanalysis, the data does not support the conclusion that biased agonism, favoring G protein signaling, was not present. Further, these observations agree with prior studies wherein oliceridine, PZM21 and SR-17018 were first described as biased agonists with improvement in antinociception over respiratory suppression in mice. Therefore, introducing G protein signaling bias may be a means to improve opioid analgesia while avoiding certain undesirable side effects.

scholarly journals Adhesion G protein-coupled receptors are activated by exposure of a cryptic tethered agonist

2015 ◽  
Vol 112 (19) ◽  
pp. 6194-6199 ◽  
Author(s):  
Hannah M. Stoveken ◽  
Alexander G. Hajduczok ◽  
Lei Xu ◽  
Gregory G. Tall
Keyword(s):  
G Protein ◽  
Clinical Utility ◽  
G Protein Coupled Receptors ◽  
Activation Mechanism ◽  
Inhibitory Influence ◽  
Neighboring Cell ◽  
Protein Activation ◽  
G Protein Activation ◽  
G Protein Coupled

The large class of adhesion G protein-coupled receptors (aGPCRs) bind extracellular matrix or neighboring cell-surface ligands to regulate organ and tissue development through an unknown activation mechanism. We examined aGPCR activation using two prototypical aGPCRs, GPR56 and GPR110. Active dissociation of the noncovalently bound GPR56 or GPR110 extracellular domains (ECDs) from the respective seven-transmembrane (7TM) domains relieved an inhibitory influence and permitted both receptors to activate defined G protein subtypes. After ECD displacement, the newly revealed short N-terminal stalk regions of the 7TM domains were found to be essential for G protein activation. Synthetic peptides comprising these stalks potently activated GPR56 or GPR110 in vitro or in cells, demonstrating that the stalks comprise a tethered agonist that was encrypted within the ECD. Establishment of an aGPCR activation mechanism provides a rational platform for the development of aGPCR synthetic modulators that could find clinical utility toward aGPCR-directed disease.

Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document