ML00253764拯救MC4R缺陷型突变体的特性研究

旨在探究非肽类小分子ML00253764对致肥胖MC4R突变体拯救的特异性及经其拯救后受体的内化动力学特性,构建了黑皮质素受体及其突变体稳定表达的细胞模型。流式细胞术结果显示,ML00253764使MC4R缺陷型变受体N62S与P78L的膜表面表达分别提高了43%与34%,但对其他黑皮质素受体及其突变体几乎无影响,说明ML00253764的拯救效果具有MC4R受体特异性及突变受体特异性特征。内化动力学研究结果证明经拯救的突变受体与野生型受体的内化特性相同,内化速率参数t1/2无显著性差异。内源性配体α-MSH及Ag RP对MC4R缺陷型受体膜表面表达无拯救性功效,进一步从侧面证明ML00253764的作用方式与二者不同,而突变受体被拯救是细胞膜渗透性药学伴侣分子特定作用的结果。     

虹鳟MC4R基因的PCR扩增及其应用

黑素细胞皮质激素受体(MC4R)是跨膜G蛋白偶联受体。MC4R在人和鼠的体重、能量稳态和采食量的调控中具有重要作用,是第一个发现的与人类显性遗传疾病性肥胖相关的靶位点。虹鳟(Oncorhynchus mykiss)属于冷水性鱼类,具有很好的药用和食用价值,但生长缓慢。本研究根据斑马鱼的MC4R基因保守区的核苷酸序列设计引物,通过PCR扩增出虹鳟的MC4R基因,纯化后测序。本实验测出虹鳟MC4R基因968bp,并发现其与其它鱼类的MC4R进行了同源性分析,构建基因进化树。     

Semaphorin 3——下丘脑黑皮质素回路形成关键因子

下丘脑是机体代谢与能量平衡调控的重要神经中枢。下丘脑“黑皮质素”(melanocortin)神经环路参与能量稳态调节:该环路,由下丘脑弓状核POMC神经元、AgRP神经元、室旁核MC4R阳性神经元及三者间的神经投射共同构成。     

牦牛MC4R基因及其蛋白结构预测分析

根据普通牛MC4R基因序列设计同源引物,扩增克隆牦牛MC4R基因,对牦牛与普通牛MC4R基因及其蛋白结构进行生物信息学分析。与普通牛MC4R基因相比,牦牛在该基因存在5个多态位点,其中3个在密码子第3位,2个位点在密码子第1位;4个牦牛个体中有1个与其他个体存在2个变异位点且在密码子第3位;牦牛与普通牛在MC4R蛋白2个氨基酸的差异只引起两物种MC4R蛋白二级结构组分的细微差异。MC4R蛋白在牦牛和普通牛之间保守性较强,MC4R基因可能在哺乳类数百万年的进化历程中受到较强的进化抑制或净化进化。为研究MC4R基因在牦牛食欲控制、体重调节、脂肪沉积和能量平衡调节等方面提供基础资料。     

溶血磷脂酸受体及下游信号通路在心脏细胞生长中的调节作用

溶血磷脂酸（1ysophosphatidic acid,LPA）是一种十分活跃的磷脂信号分子,具有广泛的生物学效应,包括诱导神经轴突回缩、应力纤维形成、促进血小板凝集、诱导平滑肌收缩、刺激血管平滑肌细胞增殖等。LPA通过其受体及耦联的G蛋白调节细胞内信号途径,介导各种生物学效应。心脏组织中存在多种LPA受体亚型,尤其受体LPAl亚型在心脏组织中的含量仅次于脑,位居第二,暗示LPA在心脏中有重要的生物学功能。本文着重对LPA的5种受体亚型的组织分布、与G蛋白的耦联和对第二信使的活性调节,以及LPA及其受体亚型对心脏细胞的生长调节作一综述。     

G蛋白偶联受体介导游离脂肪酸的信号通路及生理功能

游离脂肪酸（free fatty acid,FFA）是动物一种重要能量来源,同时它还是一种重要的信号分子,其生理功能和作用机制长期以来倍受关注. 最近研究表明,细胞膜存在FFA的特定孤儿型G蛋白偶联膜受体家族.中长链游离脂肪酸是GPR40和GPR120的配基,而短链游离脂肪酸则是GPR41和GPR43的配基. 该受体家族可以介导游离脂肪酸,通过ERK、PI3K-Akt和MAPK信号通路,在维持机体内的葡萄糖稳态、脂肪形成、白细胞功能和细胞增殖等生理过程中发挥重要作用. 本文就游离脂肪酸G蛋白偶联受体的结构、分布、配体选择性、下游信号通路,及其介导FFA生理功能的最新研究进展进行简要综述.     

黑素皮质素受体-4的研究进展

黑素皮质素受体 4 (MC4R)是人类中枢神经系统中参与调节肥胖症发生的重要因素 ,可调节动物的体重和采食量。自MC4R基因克隆以来 ,学者们对MC4R的结构 ,生理功能 ,调控 ,作用机制及其基因突变与体重的关系等方面进行了大量的研究。     

Raf激酶抑制蛋白(RKIP)的生物学功能研究

Raf激酶抑制蛋白（Raf kinase inhibitor protein,RKIP）属于磷脂酰乙醇胺结合蛋白（phosphatidylethanolamine-binding protein,PEBP）家族,广泛存在于各种生物中,参与了对细胞内多种信号转导通路的调节作用。RKIP可以与Raf-1结合,从而抑制MAPK信号转导通路,并参与了对G蛋白偶联受体信号通路和NF-κB信号通路的调控。RKIP在膜的生物合成、精子发生、神经发育和细胞凋亡等生理过程中发挥重要作用,并参与了老年痴呆症及糖尿病等的病理过程。此外,近年来的研究表明RKIP是一个新的转移抑制因子,可以抑制前列腺癌、人乳腺癌和黑色素瘤细胞的转移,并已成为一个新的前列腺癌诊断标志物。     

黑素皮质素受体-2基因表达调控相关因子研究进展

黑素皮质素受体-2（melanoeortin2-receptor,MC2R）属于A类七个跨膜α螺旋G蛋白受体,具有通过CA／cAMP／PKA信号转导途径调节类固醇激素分泌的昼夜节律和应激引起变化的功能。MC2R基因表达障碍可导致一种常染色体隐性遗传疾病,即家族性糖皮质激素缺陷（FGD）。黑素皮质素受体-2（melanocortin2-receptor,MC2R）基因在特定组织中是否表达,表达丰度的高低是由多种调控因子相互作用决定的。本文就参与其表达调控的类固醇转录因子-1（steroidogenic factor-1,SF-1）、过氧化物增值物激活受体γ（PPARγ）、视黄酸X受体α（RXRα）、活化激活蛋白1（activatorproteinl,AP-1）DAX-1（dosage-sensitive sexreversal adrenal hypoplasia gene on the X chromosome,gene-1）和E-盒结合蛋白等因子做一综述。     

Pharmacological comparison of rat and human melanocortin 3 and 4 receptors in vitro

The melanocortin 3 and 4 receptors are G-protein-coupled receptors found in the hypothalamus with important role in regulation of the energy balance. In this study, we performed pharmacological comparison of the rat and human melancortin (MC) 3 and MC4 receptors. We transiently expressed the genes for these receptors individually in a mammalian cell line and determined the binding affinities to several MSH peptides. The results showed no major difference between the rat and human MC3 receptors while the rat MC4 receptor had higher affinity to several peptides compared with the human MC4 receptor. NDP-, alpha-, beta-, gamma-MSH, ACTH(1-24), HS014 and MTII had from 5- to 34-fold higher affinity for the rat MC4 receptor, while SHU9119, HS024 and HS028 had similar affinity for both the MC4 receptors. Pharmacological species difference have earlier been reported for the MC1 and MC5 receptors but this is the first report showing important differences between the rat and human MC4 receptors.     

Differential expression of the melanocortin-4 receptor in male and female C57BL/6J mice

The melanocortin 4 receptor is a member of melanocortin receptors of G-protein-coupled receptors. By binding to melanocortin receptor agonists or antagonists, MC4R participates in the regulating of food intake, weight, energy homeostasis and sexual behavior. By activating the protein kinase A and leptin-melanocortin signalling pathways, MC4R mediates the amplification of signals from the hypothalamo–pituitary–adrenal and hypothalamo–pituitary–thyroid axes. This process permits peripheral information about the status of energy metabolism to be transmitted to the central nervous system. The hypothalamic nuclei then integrate these signals to evoke the appropriate reaction. We found that different sexes exhibited distinct metabolic regulation abilities, likely due to differences in these signalling pathways. MC4R plays a key role in coordinating the afferent messages from the peripheral and regulatory signals by controlling food intake and energy expenditure. To probe the disparities in metabolism and weight regulation between the sexes, we analyzed the expression of MC4R in different tissues from male and female mice by qRT-PCR and immunofluorescence. The results show that the expression of MC4R in brain and kidney is higher in female mice than in male mice, but in the livers, the result is opposition. Additionally, in both sexes, the expression of MC4R is higher in the brain than in the kidneys, and its expression in the liver is lowest, in males, the expression of MC4R in the testis is higher than that in the kidneys. These data show that the expression of MC4R exist different between sexes mice.     

Molecular determinants of human melanocortin-4 receptor responsible for antagonist SHU9119 selective activity

The hypothalamic melanocortin-4 receptor (MC4R), a seven transmembrane G-protein-coupled receptor, plays an important role in the regulation of body weight. The synthetic melanocortin analog SHU9119 has been widely used to characterize the physiological role of MC4R in feeding behavior and energy homeostasis. Previous studies indicated that SHU9119 is an agonist at the melanocortin-1 receptor (MC1R) but an antagonist at the MC4R. However, the molecular basis of the interaction between hMC4R and SHU9119 has not been clearly defined. To gain insight into the molecular determinants of hMC4R in the selectivity of SHU9119 chimeras and mutants hMC1R and hMC4R were expressed in cell lines and pharmacologically analyzed. A region of receptor containing the third transmembrane of hMC4R was found to be required for selective SHU9119 antagonism. Further mutagenesis studies of this region of hMC4R demonstrated that the amino acid residue leucine 133 in the third transmembrane was critical for the selective antagonist activity of SHU9119. The single substitution of leucine 133 to methionine did not affect SHU9119 binding to hMC4R. However, this substitution did convert SHU9119 from an antagonist to an agonist. Conversely, exchange of Met(128) in hMC1R to Leu, the homologous residue 133 of hMC4R, displayed a reduction in SHU9119 binding affinity and potency. This report provides the details of the molecular recognition of SHU9119 antagonism at hMC4R and shows that amino acid Leu(133) of hMC4R plays a key role in melanocortin receptor subtype specificity.     

Design and bioactivities of melanotropic peptide agonists and antagonists: Design based on a conformationally constrained somatostatin template

Summary α-Melanotropin and ACTH, POMC peptides, initiate biological activity by interaction with the classical pigment cell (α-MSH receptor, MC1R) and adrenal gland (ACTH receptor, MC2R) melanocortin receptors, respectively. The recently discovered MC3R, MC4R and MC5R receptors provide new targets and new biological functions for POMC peptides. We have developed conformationally constrained α-melanotropin peptides that interact with all of these receptors as agonists and antagonists and are examining new approaches to obtain highly selective ligands for each of these melanocortin receptors. Previously, we had converted somatostatin-derived peptides into potent and highly selective analogues that act as antagonists at the μ opioid receptors. Using the reverse turn template that came out of these studies, we have designed, de novo, agonist and antagonist peptide analogues that interact with melanocortin receptors.     

The agouti-related protein decapeptide (Yc[CRFFNAFC]Y) possesses agonist activity at the murine melanocortin-1 receptor

Agouti-related protein (AGRP) is a naturally occurring antagonist of the brain melanocortin receptors (MC3R and MC4R) and is physiologically implicated as participating in feeding behavior and energy homeostasis. The human AGRP decapeptide Yc[CRFFNAFC]Y has been previously reported as binding to the human MC3 and MC4 receptors and antagonizing the MC4 receptor. We have synthesized this decapeptide and pharmacologically characterized it at the murine melanocortin receptors and found it to possess MC4R antagonist activity (pA(2) = 6.8) and, unexpectedly, MC1R agonist activity (EC(50) = 2.89 microM). This study characterizes the first AGRP-based peptide agonist at the melanocortin receptors.     

AgRP(83-132) acts as an inverse agonist on the human-melanocortin-4 receptor

The central melanocortin (MC) system has been demonstrated to act downstream of leptin in the regulation of body weight. The system comprises alpha-MSH, which acts as agonist, and agouti-related protein (AgRP), which acts as antagonist at the MC3 and MC4 receptors (MC3R and MC4R). This property suggests that MCR activity is tightly regulated and that opposing signals are integrated at the receptor level. We here propose another level of regulation within the melanocortin system by showing that the human (h) MC4R displays constitutive activity in vitro as assayed by adenylyl cyclase (AC) activity. Furthermore, human AgRP(83-132) acts as an inverse agonist for the hMC4R since it was able to suppress constitutive activity of the hMC4R both in intact B16/G4F melanoma cells and membrane preparations. The effect of AgRP(83-132) on the hMC4R was blocked by the MC4R ligand SHU9119. Also the hMC3R and the mouse(m)MC5R were shown to be constitutively active. AgRP(83-132) acted as an inverse agonist on the hMC3R but not on the mMC5R. Thus, AgRP is able to regulate MCR activity independently of alpha-MSH. These findings form a basis to further investigate the relevance of constitutive activity of the MC4R and of inverse agonism of AgRP for the regulation of body weight.     

Chimeric NDP-MSH and MTII melanocortin peptides with agouti-related protein (AGRP) Arg-Phe-Phe amino acids possess agonist melanocortin receptor activity

Agouti-related protein (AGRP) is one of only two known endogenous antagonists of G-protein coupled receptors (GPCRs). Specifically, AGRP antagonizes the brain melanocortin-3 and -4 receptors involved in energy homeostasis, regulation of feeding behavior, and obesity. -Melanocyte stimulating hormone (-MSH) is one of the known endogenous agonists for these receptors. It has been hypothesized that the Arg-Phe-Phe (111–113) human AGRP amino acids may be mimicking the melanocortin agonist Phe-Arg-Trp (7–9) residue interactions with the melanocortin receptors that are important for both receptor molecular recognition and stimulation. To test this hypothesis, we generated thirteen chimeric peptide ligands based upon the melanocortin agonist peptides NDP-MSH (Ac-Ser-Tyr-Ser-Nle⁴-Glu-His-DPhe-Arg-Trp-Gly-Lys-Pro-Val-NH₂) and MTII (Ac-Nle-c[Asp-His-DPhe-Arg-Trp-Lys]-NH₂). In these chimeric ligands, the agonist DPhe-Arg-Trp amino acids were replaced by the AGRP Arg-Phe-Phe residues, and resulted in agonist activity at the mouse melanocortin receptors (mMC1R and mMC3–5Rs), supporting the hypothesis that the AGRP antagonist ligand Arg-Phe-Phe residues mimic the agonist Phe-Arg-Trp amino acids. Interestingly, the Ac-Ser-Tyr-Ser-Nle⁴-Glu-His-Arg-DPhe-Phe-Gly-Lys-Pro-Val-NH₂ peptide possessed 7 nM mMC1R agonist potency, and is 850-fold selective for the mMC1R versus the mMC3R, 2300-fold selective for the mMC1R versus the mMC4R, and 60-fold selective for the MC1R versus the mMC5R, resulting in the discovery of a new peptide template for the design of melanocortin receptor selective ligands.