Receptors Flashcards
Natural contributors to different receptor effect
- location of receptor expression
- different combination of receptors
- different signal transductions
- pathway branching and cross talk = co-ordination of signals from incoming ligands
pathway branching
primary signal transduction molecule can activate two different downstream molecules
pathway crosstalk
downstream signalling molecules from different receptors activate a common downstream target
GPCR signal transduction
In the resting state G protein exists as a trimeric unit composed of Ga, Gb, and Gy with GDP bound to Ga.
Ligand binding causes a conformational change in the receptor (outward movement of TM6 & TM2)
G protein binds to activated receptor in space created through movement
Conformation change in G protein causing dissociation of GDP
GTP binding causes dissociation of Gb/y heterodimer and Ga
Ga acts on adenylate cyclase, Gby acts on other targets (eg: ion channels)
GTP hydrolysis, return to resting state
downstream amplification (GPCRs)
single ligand binding to receptor can activate multiple adenylate cyclase enzymes, causing massive increase of cAMP.
cAMP can activate PKA causing a phosphorylation cascade which further amplifies.
Requirements for drug screening
- Cell line with appropriate receptor
(can be grown at high number) - assay with high sensitivity and accuracy (minimises false positives/negatives)
- appropriate negative/positive controls
- sustained response
(transient responses difficult to screen) - low cost and low volume
- amendable to automation
- high tolerance to solvents
efficacy
the ability of a ligand to bind to a receptor and exert a response, Emax = maximum possible response at full receptor occupancy
(if drug produces less than 100% response, is a partial agonist)
potency
a measure of how much a drug is required in order to produce a particular effect. This is defined in a concentration response curve by the EC50 – the concentration of drug required to produce 50% of maximal response.
(If a drug has high potency only a small amount is required to induce a response.)
affinity
a measure of a drugs ability to bind to its specific receptor
- defined by Kd: the concentration required to occupy 50% of receptors
- Bmax: maximum receptor number
types of in vitro cell models
cell lines/primary cultures
cell extracts
purified proteins
advantages of in vitro cell models
- reduce use of animals
- study the human target (instead of animal)
- can collect multiple data points due to ease of cell proliferation
- can be automates
- should produce readily reproducible results
disadvantages of in vitro cell models
- removed from true biological complexity
- cell phenotypes can drift or be contaminated
how to chose a cell for transfection
- robust growth, stability, readily transfectable
- low background activity (should not respond to drugs in absence of specific transfected target)
commonly used cell lines for transfection
HEK: human embryonic kidney
CHO: Chinese hamster ovary
COS-7: green monkey?
How to transfect a cell
- gene for receptor of interest is inserted into an expression plasmid which acts to transfect cell
- selection pressure (antibiotic) applied until all un-transfected cells die (transfected cells express antibiotic immunity)
- further isolation to obtain cell line with highest expression of receptor of interest
- maintain cells in antibiotic to maintain expression
expression plasmid
manmade circle of DNA containing
- MCS: multiple cloning site allows insertion of gene of interest
- Promoter: enables gene expression to be turned on (constitutive/inducible) once inside cell
- selection: antibiotic resistant genes
transfection methods
physical treatments: electroporation, microinjection, nanoparticles
chemical treatments: lipid-mediated DNA transfection via liposome vectors, biological particles (viruses)
stable transfection
long term expression of a transgene by integrating foreign DNA into host genome
WE WANT STABLE!! Maintain by continuously applying antibiotics
transient transfection
gene expressed off plasmid, expression of transfected gene lost with cell division
cell line isolation methods
clonal isolation: use limited dilution to isolate a single cell with desired expression, and grow.
expression sorting: use flow cytometry to select out high expressing cells
both approaches require antibody/tag that does not alter function
importance of further cell isolation following antibiotic application
cells can exist in heterogeneous expression of desired protein, and the foreign protein may slow down growth leading to low expressing cells taking over!
considerations with over-expression model
transfected cells express the receptor at a greater level than normal conditions
= increased chance of finding an initial hit, but may amplify low affinity interactions
detection of phosphorylation signalling event
use phosphorylation specific antibodies
detection of changed protein location signalling event
microscopy, BRET approaches
detection of altered gene transcription signalling event
western blotting/microscopy to quantify levels of protein
detection of environmental modulation signalling event
electrophysiology
cAMP
- activates protein kinase A
- hydrolysed by phosphodiesterase
phosphodiesterase inhibitors
methylxanthines: caffeine, theophylline, IMBX
often included in cAMP assays to enhance cAMP detection
forskolin
agonist at adenylate cyclase. used to increase the basal cAMP levels to allow detection of decreased cAMP levels (Gai)
considerations in signalling assays
- sensitivity
- dynamic range
- requirement for transfection
- kinetic changes or accumulation
- time
- cost (if expensive but single use can be justified over cheaper, less effective assays)
accumulation assays
good for drug screening but not indicate actual time course of signalling
dynamic range
the range of values that can accurately measured by the assay
- want to use concentrations that fall within the linear part of the standard curve
- always do a standard curve so you can understand where the data falls on it
scintillation cAMP assay
- incorporate 3H-adenine (radioactive) into ATP, ADP, cAMP by overnight incubation
- stimulate/inhibit cAMP production with drug
- lyse cells and use sequential chromatography to separate 3H-cAMP from other tritium labelled molecules
- detection via scintillation counting
pros/cons of scintillation counting assay
Pros:
- direct measure of cAMP
- very sensitive
- unlimited dynamic range
Cons:
- time consuming & low throughput
- typically used as an accumulation assay in presence of PDE inhibitor (pick a time point to measure)
- limited kinetic range, as each time point is a different cell preparation
competition cAMP assay
cAMP produced by cell competes for antibody binding against a (radioactive/fluorescent/luminescent) labelled cAMP. The more cAMP bound, the less signal detected; labelled cAMP interacts with donor on antibody to produce fluorescence.
- stimulate cells with drug
- incubate for set time point
- lyse cells
- incubate with donor (antibody) and acceptor (labelled-cAMP)
- detect signal
pros/cons of competitive cAMP assay
Pros:
- high throughput & automation/miniaturisation possible
- doesn’t require cell transfection, but cells must still be lysed
Cons:
- limited dynamic range (lysate must be diluted to ensure cAMP levels fall in range of assay)
- accumulation assay; set time points
- reagents $$$
- susceptible to interference from media (can be overcome)
biosensor cAMP assays
resonant energy transfer between two proteins in close proximity
BRET cAMP assay
cAMP bound to EPAC = RLuc (bioluminescent donor) activated by luciferase. No activation of YFP (effector)
cAMP not bound = Rluc donates light to YFP, which emits bioluminescent signal
- detected on plate reader > cell population based > high throughput
- enzyme based, requires substrate (coelenterizine) in excess, as depletion could interfere with results
FRET cAMP assay
donor is fluorescent and activated by light, transfers energy to acceptor when in close proximity.
Eg: antibody = donor, d2-cAMP = acceptor.
increase signal when less endogenous cAMP.
Eg: CFP = donor, YFP = acceptor
- microscope detection allows analysis of single cells
- activated by laser, thus can cause photobleaching/laser damage over time
- NO HIGH THROUGHPUT
EPAC
endogenous cAMP-binding protein.
Used in BRET; when cAMP not bound RLuc & EYFP held in close proximity = signal. When cAMP bound they are distanced = no signal
pros/cons of biosensor cAMP assays
Pros:
- kinetic assay; can measure response across time
- generally good sensitivity/dynamic range
- high throughput/miniaturisation (BRET)
- cost effective
Cons
- population based response (BRET)
- requires transfection of living cells, may over exaggerate response + limits type of cell can be used
issues with cAMP as a measure in assays
cAMP is a highly activated pathway
- can detect weak signals
BUT
- limits ability to detect partial agonism
Good for initial drug screening, but need additional screening to characterise ligand effect
Other uses for BRET/FRET
- dimerisation
- movement of proteins (can label protein and receptor, thus can observe when in close proximity)
Migraine
Sensitisation to CGRP, which is abundant in pain-modulating nerves including trigeminal
CB1
a cannabinoid receptor with widespread distribution throughout the brain, that mediates the psychoactive effects of cannabis
orthosteric binding assays
radio ligand binding assays
+ saturation binding assay (determine affinity of radio-labelled compounds)
+ competitive binding assay (determine affinity and selectivity of endogenous ligands)