1
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Jia Y, Xu L, Wang L, Yan K, Chen J, Xu P, Di B, Yan F, Hu C. A light-up fluorescence probe for wash-free analysis of Mu-opioid receptor and ligand-binding events. Anal Chim Acta 2023; 1261:341220. [PMID: 37147056 DOI: 10.1016/j.aca.2023.341220] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/15/2023] [Revised: 04/01/2023] [Accepted: 04/13/2023] [Indexed: 05/07/2023]
Abstract
With the aggravated burden of opioid use disorder spreading worldwide, demands for new forms of opioid receptor agonist/antagonist constitute immense research interest. The Mu-opioid receptor (MOR) is currently in the spotlight on account of its general involvement in opioid-induced antinociception, tolerance and dependence. MOR binding assay, however, is often complicated by difficulty in MOR separation and purification, as well as the tedious procedure in standard biolayer interferometry and surface plasmon resonance measurements. To this end, we present TPE2N as a light-up fluorescent probe for MOR, which exhibits satisfactory performance in both live cells and lysates. TPE2N was elaborately designed based on the synergistic effect of twisted intramolecular charge-transfer and aggregation-induced emission by incorporating a tetraphenylethene unit to emit strong fluorescence in a restrained environment upon binding with MOR through the naloxone pharmacore. The developed assay enabled high-throughput screening of a compound library, and successfully identified three ligands as lead compounds for further development.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yan Jia
- China National Narcotics Control Commission-China Pharmaceutical University Joint Laboratory on Key Technologies of Narcotics Control, No. 24 Tongjiaxiang Road, Nanjing, 210009, China
| | - Lili Xu
- China National Narcotics Control Commission-China Pharmaceutical University Joint Laboratory on Key Technologies of Narcotics Control, No. 24 Tongjiaxiang Road, Nanjing, 210009, China
| | - Lancheng Wang
- China National Narcotics Control Commission-China Pharmaceutical University Joint Laboratory on Key Technologies of Narcotics Control, No. 24 Tongjiaxiang Road, Nanjing, 210009, China
| | - Kun Yan
- China National Narcotics Control Commission-China Pharmaceutical University Joint Laboratory on Key Technologies of Narcotics Control, No. 24 Tongjiaxiang Road, Nanjing, 210009, China
| | - Jieru Chen
- China National Narcotics Control Commission-China Pharmaceutical University Joint Laboratory on Key Technologies of Narcotics Control, No. 24 Tongjiaxiang Road, Nanjing, 210009, China
| | - Pengcheng Xu
- China National Narcotics Control Commission-China Pharmaceutical University Joint Laboratory on Key Technologies of Narcotics Control, No. 24 Tongjiaxiang Road, Nanjing, 210009, China
| | - Bin Di
- China National Narcotics Control Commission-China Pharmaceutical University Joint Laboratory on Key Technologies of Narcotics Control, No. 24 Tongjiaxiang Road, Nanjing, 210009, China.
| | - Fang Yan
- China National Narcotics Control Commission-China Pharmaceutical University Joint Laboratory on Key Technologies of Narcotics Control, No. 24 Tongjiaxiang Road, Nanjing, 210009, China.
| | - Chi Hu
- China National Narcotics Control Commission-China Pharmaceutical University Joint Laboratory on Key Technologies of Narcotics Control, No. 24 Tongjiaxiang Road, Nanjing, 210009, China.
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2
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Drakopoulos A, Decker M. Development and Biological Applications of Fluorescent Opioid Ligands. Chempluschem 2020; 85:1354-1364. [DOI: 10.1002/cplu.202000212] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/18/2020] [Revised: 05/30/2020] [Indexed: 12/24/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Antonios Drakopoulos
- Pharmaceutical and Medicinal ChemistryInstitute of Pharmacy and Food ChemistryJulius Maximilian University of Würzburg 97074 Würzburg Germany
| | - Michael Decker
- Pharmaceutical and Medicinal ChemistryInstitute of Pharmacy and Food ChemistryJulius Maximilian University of Würzburg 97074 Würzburg Germany
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3
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Drakopoulos A, Koszegi Z, Lanoiselée Y, Hübner H, Gmeiner P, Calebiro D, Decker M. Investigation of Inactive-State κ Opioid Receptor Homodimerization via Single-Molecule Microscopy Using New Antagonistic Fluorescent Probes. J Med Chem 2020; 63:3596-3609. [DOI: 10.1021/acs.jmedchem.9b02011] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Antonios Drakopoulos
- Pharmaceutical and Medicinal Chemistry, Institute of Pharmacy and Food Chemistry, Julius Maximilian University of Würzburg, 97074 Würzburg, Germany
| | - Zsombor Koszegi
- Institute of Metabolism and Systems Research and Centre of Membrane Proteins and Receptors, College of Medical and Dental Sciences, University of Birmingham, B152TT Birmingham, U.K
| | - Yann Lanoiselée
- Institute of Metabolism and Systems Research and Centre of Membrane Proteins and Receptors, College of Medical and Dental Sciences, University of Birmingham, B152TT Birmingham, U.K
| | - Harald Hübner
- Medicinal Chemistry, Department of Chemistry and Pharmacy, Friedrich-Alexander University of Erlangen-Nürnberg, 91058 Erlangen, Germany
| | - Peter Gmeiner
- Medicinal Chemistry, Department of Chemistry and Pharmacy, Friedrich-Alexander University of Erlangen-Nürnberg, 91058 Erlangen, Germany
| | - Davide Calebiro
- Institute of Metabolism and Systems Research and Centre of Membrane Proteins and Receptors, College of Medical and Dental Sciences, University of Birmingham, B152TT Birmingham, U.K
| | - Michael Decker
- Pharmaceutical and Medicinal Chemistry, Institute of Pharmacy and Food Chemistry, Julius Maximilian University of Würzburg, 97074 Würzburg, Germany
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4
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Arttamangkul S, Plazek A, Platt EJ, Jin H, Murray TF, Birdsong WT, Rice KC, Farrens DL, Williams JT. Visualizing endogenous opioid receptors in living neurons using ligand-directed chemistry. eLife 2019; 8:49319. [PMID: 31589142 PMCID: PMC6809603 DOI: 10.7554/elife.49319] [Citation(s) in RCA: 27] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/04/2019] [Accepted: 10/06/2019] [Indexed: 12/11/2022] Open
Abstract
Identifying neurons that have functional opioid receptors is fundamental for the understanding of the cellular, synaptic and systems actions of opioids. Current techniques are limited to post hoc analyses of fixed tissues. Here we developed a fluorescent probe, naltrexamine-acylimidazole (NAI), to label opioid receptors based on a chemical approach termed ‘traceless affinity labeling’. In this approach, a high affinity antagonist naltrexamine is used as the guide molecule for a transferring reaction of acylimidazole at the receptor. This reaction generates a fluorescent dye covalently linked to the receptor while naltrexamine is liberated and leaves the binding site. The labeling induced by this reagent allowed visualization of opioid-sensitive neurons in rat and mouse brains without loss of function of the fluorescently labeled receptors. The ability to locate endogenous receptors in living tissues will aid considerably in establishing the distribution and physiological role of opioid receptors in the CNS of wild type animals.
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Affiliation(s)
- Seksiri Arttamangkul
- The Vollum Institute, Oregon Health & Science University, Portland, United States
| | - Andrew Plazek
- Medicinal Chemistry Core, Oregon Health & Science University, Portland, United States
| | - Emily J Platt
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, School of Medicine, Oregon Health & Science University, Portland, United States
| | - Haihong Jin
- Medicinal Chemistry Core, Oregon Health & Science University, Portland, United States
| | - Thomas F Murray
- Department of Pharmacology, School of Medicine, Creighton University, Omaha, United States
| | - William T Birdsong
- The Vollum Institute, Oregon Health & Science University, Portland, United States
| | - Kenner C Rice
- Drug Design and Synthesis Section, Intramural Research Program, NIDA and NIAAA, Bethesda, United States
| | - David L Farrens
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, School of Medicine, Oregon Health & Science University, Portland, United States
| | - John T Williams
- The Vollum Institute, Oregon Health & Science University, Portland, United States
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5
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Leong C, Neumann C, Ramasamy S, Rout B, Yi Wee L, Bigliardi-Qi M, Bigliardi PL. Investigating endogenous µ-opioid receptors in human keratinocytes as pharmacological targets using novel fluorescent ligand. PLoS One 2017; 12:e0188607. [PMID: 29211767 PMCID: PMC5718609 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0188607] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/16/2017] [Accepted: 11/09/2017] [Indexed: 12/14/2022] Open
Abstract
Opioids in skin function during stress response, regeneration, ageing and, particularly in regulating sensation. In chronic pruritus, topical treatment with Naltrexone changes μ-opioid receptor (μ-OR) localization to relieve itch. The molecular mechanisms behind the effects of Naltrexone on μ-OR function in reduction of itching behavior has not been studied. There is an immediate need to understand the endogenous complexity of μ-OR dynamics in normal and pathological skin conditions. Here we evaluate real-time behavior of μ-OR-Endomorphine complexes in the presence of agonist and antagonists. The μ-OR ligand Endomorphine-1 (EM) was conjugated to the fluorescent dye Tetramethylrhodamine (TAMRA) to investigate the effects of agonist and antagonists in N/TERT-1 keratinocytes. The cellular localization of the EM-TAMRA was followed through time resolved confocal microscopy and population analysis was performed by flow cytometry. The in vitro analyses demonstrate fast internalization and trafficking of the endogenous EM-TAMRA-μ-OR interactions in a qualitative manner. Competition with Endomorphine-1, Naltrexone and CTOP show both canonical and non-canonical effects in basal and differentiated keratinocytes. Acute and chronic treatment with Naltrexone and Endomorphine-1 increases EM-TAMRA binding to skin cells. Although Naltrexone is clinically effective in relieving itch, the mechanisms behind re-distribution of μ-ORs during clinical treatments are not known. Our study has given insight into cellular mechanisms of μ-OR ligand-receptor interactions after opioid agonist and antagonist treatments in vitro. These findings potentially offer opportunities in using novel treatment strategies for skin and peripheral sensory disorders.
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Affiliation(s)
- Cheryl Leong
- Institute of Medical Biology, Agency for Science Technology & Research (A*STAR), Singapore, Singapore
| | - Christine Neumann
- Institute of Medical Biology, Agency for Science Technology & Research (A*STAR), Singapore, Singapore
| | - Srinivas Ramasamy
- Institute of Medical Biology, Agency for Science Technology & Research (A*STAR), Singapore, Singapore
| | - Bhimsen Rout
- Institute of Medical Biology, Agency for Science Technology & Research (A*STAR), Singapore, Singapore
| | - Lim Yi Wee
- Institute of Chemical and Engineering Sciences, Agency for Science Technology & Research (A*STAR), Singapore, Singapore
| | - Mei Bigliardi-Qi
- Institute of Medical Biology, Agency for Science Technology & Research (A*STAR), Singapore, Singapore
- * E-mail: , (PB); , (MB)
| | - Paul L. Bigliardi
- Institute of Medical Biology, Agency for Science Technology & Research (A*STAR), Singapore, Singapore
- National University Hospital, Division of Rheumatology, University Medicine Cluster, Singapore, Singapore
- * E-mail: , (PB); , (MB)
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6
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McCarron ST, Chambers JJ. Modular chemical probes for visualizing and tracking endogenous ion channels. Neuropharmacology 2015; 98:41-7. [PMID: 25866020 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuropharm.2015.03.033] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/31/2014] [Revised: 03/26/2015] [Accepted: 03/27/2015] [Indexed: 12/24/2022]
Abstract
Fluorescently labeled, small molecule ligands designed for the labeling and tracking of neuronal receptors have become an increasingly popular tool in neurobiology. The small size of these probes allows for subcellular imaging of proteins in their native state with minimal perturbation of the system. Several factors such as the selectivity of the pharmacophore, the size and composition of linkers used, and the fluorescence stability of the fluorophore can all influence the effectiveness of the small molecule probe. Here we discuss a few key molecular targets of this technology including the NMDA receptor, serotonin transporter, dopamine transporter, and adenosine receptor due to their involvement in numerous neurodegenerative diseases. Future iterations of these probes will allow for a better understanding of many important neurological proteins as well as the development of new and potent therapeutic drugs. This review will cover probe design considerations and discuss examples of specific small molecule fluorescent ligands that have been used to study a multitude of neuronal receptors through fluorescent imaging. This article is part of the Special Issue entitled 'Fluorescent Tools in Neuropharmacology'.
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Affiliation(s)
- Stephen T McCarron
- Department of Chemistry, University of Massachusetts, Amherst, MA 01003, USA
| | - James J Chambers
- Department of Chemistry, University of Massachusetts, Amherst, MA 01003, USA; Neuroscience and Behavior Program, University of Massachusetts, Amherst, MA 01003, USA.
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7
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Ciruela F, Jacobson KA, Fernández-Dueñas V. Portraying G protein-coupled receptors with fluorescent ligands. ACS Chem Biol 2014; 9:1918-28. [PMID: 25010291 PMCID: PMC4168789 DOI: 10.1021/cb5004042] [Citation(s) in RCA: 28] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/17/2022]
Abstract
![]()
The
thermodynamics of ligand–receptor interactions at the
surface of living cells represents a fundamental aspect of G protein-coupled
receptor (GPCR) biology; thus, its detailed elucidation constitutes
a challenge for modern pharmacology. Interestingly, fluorescent ligands
have been developed for a variety of GPCRs in order to monitor ligand–receptor
binding in living cells. Accordingly, new methodological strategies
derived from noninvasive fluorescence-based approaches, especially
fluorescence resonance energy transfer (FRET), have been successfully
developed to characterize ligand–receptor interactions. Importantly,
these technologies are supplanting more hazardous and expensive radioactive
binding assays. In addition, FRET-based tools have also become extremely
powerful approaches for visualizing receptor–receptor interactions
(i.e., GPCR oligomerization) in living cells. Thus, by means of the
synthesis of compatible fluorescent ligands these novel techniques
can be implemented to demonstrate the existence of GPCR oligomerization
not only in heterologous systems but also in native tissues. Finally,
there is no doubt that these methodologies would also be relevant
in drug discovery in order to develop new high-throughput screening
approaches or to identify new therapeutic targets. Overall, herein,
we provide a thorough assessment of all technical and biological aspects,
including strengths and weaknesses, of these fluorescence-based methodologies
when applied to the study of GPCR biology at the plasma membrane of
living cells.
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Affiliation(s)
- Francisco Ciruela
- Unitat
de Farmacologia, Departament Patologia i Terapèutica Experimental,
Facultat de Medicina, IDIBELL, Universitat de Barcelona, L’Hospitalet
de Llobregat, 08907 Barcelona, Spain
| | - Kenneth A. Jacobson
- Molecular
Recognition Section, Laboratory of Bioorganic Chemistry, National
Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, Maryland 20892, United States
| | - Víctor Fernández-Dueñas
- Unitat
de Farmacologia, Departament Patologia i Terapèutica Experimental,
Facultat de Medicina, IDIBELL, Universitat de Barcelona, L’Hospitalet
de Llobregat, 08907 Barcelona, Spain
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8
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Sridharan R, Zuber J, Connelly SM, Mathew E, Dumont ME. Fluorescent approaches for understanding interactions of ligands with G protein coupled receptors. BIOCHIMICA ET BIOPHYSICA ACTA 2014; 1838:15-33. [PMID: 24055822 PMCID: PMC3926105 DOI: 10.1016/j.bbamem.2013.09.005] [Citation(s) in RCA: 86] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/11/2013] [Revised: 09/03/2013] [Accepted: 09/08/2013] [Indexed: 11/18/2022]
Abstract
G protein coupled receptors are responsible for a wide variety of signaling responses in diverse cell types. Despite major advances in the determination of structures of this class of receptors, the underlying mechanisms by which binding of different types of ligands specifically elicits particular signaling responses remain unclear. The use of fluorescence spectroscopy can provide important information about the process of ligand binding and ligand dependent conformational changes in receptors, especially kinetic aspects of these processes that can be difficult to extract from X-ray structures. We present an overview of the extensive array of fluorescent ligands that have been used in studies of G protein coupled receptors and describe spectroscopic approaches for assaying binding and probing the environment of receptor-bound ligands with particular attention to examples involving yeast pheromone receptors. In addition, we discuss the use of fluorescence spectroscopy for detecting and characterizing conformational changes in receptors induced by the binding of ligands. Such studies have provided strong evidence for diversity of receptor conformations elicited by different ligands, consistent with the idea that GPCRs are not simple on and off switches. This diversity of states constitutes an underlying mechanistic basis for biased agonism, the observation that different stimuli can produce different responses from a single receptor. It is likely that continued technical advances will allow fluorescence spectroscopy to play an important role in continued probing of structural transitions in G protein coupled receptors. This article is part of a Special Issue entitled: Structural and biophysical characterisation of membrane protein-ligand binding.
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Affiliation(s)
- Rajashri Sridharan
- Department of Biochemistry and Biophysics, P.O. Box 712, University of Rochester Medical Center, Rochester, NY 14642
| | - Jeffrey Zuber
- Department of Biochemistry and Biophysics, P.O. Box 712, University of Rochester Medical Center, Rochester, NY 14642
| | - Sara M. Connelly
- Department of Biochemistry and Biophysics, P.O. Box 712, University of Rochester Medical Center, Rochester, NY 14642
| | - Elizabeth Mathew
- Department of Biochemistry and Biophysics, P.O. Box 712, University of Rochester Medical Center, Rochester, NY 14642
| | - Mark E. Dumont
- Department of Biochemistry and Biophysics, P.O. Box 712, University of Rochester Medical Center, Rochester, NY 14642
- Department of Pediatrics, P.O. Box 777, University of Rochester Medical Center, Rochester, NY 14642
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9
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Mohan S, Davis RL, DeSilva U, Stevens CW. Dual regulation of mu opioid receptors in SK-N-SH neuroblastoma cells by morphine and interleukin-1β: evidence for opioid-immune crosstalk. J Neuroimmunol 2010; 227:26-34. [PMID: 20615556 DOI: 10.1016/j.jneuroim.2010.06.007] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/05/2010] [Revised: 05/27/2010] [Accepted: 06/03/2010] [Indexed: 11/19/2022]
Abstract
Treatment of SK-N-SH cells with morphine and interleukin-1beta (IL-1β) produced dual regulation of the mRNA for the human mu opioid receptor (MOR) protein. Morphine produced a decrease in the MOR mRNA while IL-1β increased it, as assessed by real-time quantitative PCR. These data were consistent with immunocytochemical studies of treated and untreated cells. Morphine-mediated down-regulation of MOR was blocked by naltrexone and IL-1β-induced up-regulation of MOR was blocked by interleukin-1 receptor type 1 antagonist. Immune-opioid crosstalk was examined by IL-1β and morphine co-treatment. These data are the first to show dual regulation of MOR in neuroblastoma cells.
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MESH Headings
- Cell Line, Tumor
- Down-Regulation/genetics
- Down-Regulation/immunology
- Humans
- Interleukin-1beta/antagonists & inhibitors
- Interleukin-1beta/metabolism
- Interleukin-1beta/physiology
- Morphine/metabolism
- Morphine/pharmacology
- Neuroblastoma/immunology
- Neuroblastoma/metabolism
- Neuroblastoma/pathology
- RNA, Messenger/antagonists & inhibitors
- RNA, Messenger/biosynthesis
- Receptor Cross-Talk/drug effects
- Receptor Cross-Talk/immunology
- Receptors, Interleukin-1 Type I/antagonists & inhibitors
- Receptors, Interleukin-1 Type I/physiology
- Receptors, Opioid, mu/agonists
- Receptors, Opioid, mu/antagonists & inhibitors
- Receptors, Opioid, mu/metabolism
- Up-Regulation/genetics
- Up-Regulation/immunology
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Affiliation(s)
- Shekher Mohan
- Department of Pharmacology and Physiology, Oklahoma State University-Center for Health Sciences, 1111 West 17(th) Street, Tulsa, OK 74107, USA
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Cheng F, McLaughlin PJ, Banks WA, Zagon IS. Passive diffusion of naltrexone into human and animal cells and upregulation of cell proliferation. Am J Physiol Regul Integr Comp Physiol 2009; 297:R844-52. [DOI: 10.1152/ajpregu.00311.2009] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/22/2022]
Abstract
Naltrexone (NTX) is a potent opioid antagonist that promotes cell proliferation by upregulating DNA synthesis through displacement of the tonically active inhibitory peptide, opioid growth factor (OGF) from its receptor (OGFr). To investigate how NTX enters cells, NTX was fluorescently labeled [1-( N)-fluoresceinyl NTX thiosemicarbazone; FNTX] to study its uptake by living cultured cells. When human head and neck squamous cell carcinoma cell line (SCC-1) was incubated with FNTX for as little as 1 min, cells displayed nuclear and cytoplasmic staining of FNTX as determined by fluorescent deconvolution microscopy, with enrichment of fluorescent signal in the nucleus and nucleolus. The same temporal-spatial distribution of FNTX was detected in a human pancreatic cancer cell line (MIA PaCa-2), African green monkey kidney cell line (COS-7), and human mesenchymal stem cells (hMSCs). FNTX remained in cells for as long as 48 h. FNTX was internalized in SCC-1 cells when incubation occurred at 4°C, with the signal being comparable to that recorded at 37°C. A 100-fold excess of NTX or a variety of other opioid ligands did not alter the temporal-spatial distribution of FNTX. Neither fluorescein-labeled dextran nor fluorescein alone entered the cells. To study the effect of FNTX on DNA synthesis, cells incubated with FNTX at concentrations ranging from 10−5 to 10−8 M had a 5-bromo-2′-deoxyuridine index that was 39–82% greater than for vehicle-treated cells and was comparable to that of unlabeled NTX (37–70%). Taken together, these results suggested that NTX enters cells by passive diffusion in a nonsaturable manner.
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11
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Böhme I, Beck-Sickinger AG. Illuminating the life of GPCRs. Cell Commun Signal 2009; 7:16. [PMID: 19602276 PMCID: PMC2726148 DOI: 10.1186/1478-811x-7-16] [Citation(s) in RCA: 60] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/08/2009] [Accepted: 07/14/2009] [Indexed: 01/19/2023] Open
Abstract
The investigation of biological systems highly depends on the possibilities that allow scientists to visualize and quantify biomolecules and their related activities in real-time and non-invasively. G-protein coupled receptors represent a family of very dynamic and highly regulated transmembrane proteins that are involved in various important physiological processes. Since their localization is not confined to the cell surface they have been a very attractive "moving target" and the understanding of their intracellular pathways as well as the identified protein-protein-interactions has had implications for therapeutic interventions. Recent and ongoing advances in both the establishment of a variety of labeling methods and the improvement of measuring and analyzing instrumentation, have made fluorescence techniques to an indispensable tool for GPCR imaging. The illumination of their complex life cycle, which includes receptor biosynthesis, membrane targeting, ligand binding, signaling, internalization, recycling and degradation, will provide new insights into the relationship between spatial receptor distribution and function. This review covers the existing technologies to track GPCRs in living cells. Fluorescent ligands, antibodies, auto-fluorescent proteins as well as the evolving technologies for chemical labeling with peptide- and protein-tags are described and their major applications concerning the GPCR life cycle are presented.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ilka Böhme
- Institute of Biochemistry, Faculty of Biosciences, Pharmacy and Psychology, Leipzig University, Brüderstr, 34, 04103 Leipzig, Germany.
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12
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Jacobson KA. Functionalized congener approach to the design of ligands for G protein-coupled receptors (GPCRs). Bioconjug Chem 2009; 20:1816-35. [PMID: 19405524 DOI: 10.1021/bc9000596] [Citation(s) in RCA: 40] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
Abstract
Functionalized congeners, in which a chemically functionalized chain is incorporated at an insensitive site on a pharmacophore, have been designed from the agonist and antagonist ligands of various G protein-coupled receptors (GPCRs). These chain extensions enable a conjugation strategy for detecting and characterizing GPCR structure and function and pharmacological modulation. The focus in many studies of functionalized congeners has been on two families of GPCRs: those responding to extracellular purines and pyrimidines-i.e., adenosine receptors (ARs) and P2Y nucleotide receptors. Functionalized congeners of small molecule as ligands for other GPCRs and non-G protein coupled receptors have also been designed. For example, among biogenic amine neurotransmitter receptors, muscarinic acetylcholine receptor antagonists and adrenergic receptor ligands have been studied with a functionalized congener approach. Adenosine A(1), A(2A), and A(3) receptor functionalized congeners have yielded macromolecular conjugates, irreversibly binding AR ligands for receptor inactivation and cross-linking, radioactive probes that use prosthetic groups, immobilized ligands for affinity chromatography, and dual-acting ligands that function as binary drugs. Poly(amidoamine) dendrimers have served as nanocarriers for covalently conjugated AR functionalized congeners. Rational methods of ligand design derived from molecular modeling and templates have been included in these studies. Thus, the design of novel ligands, both small molecules and macromolecular conjugates, for studying the chemical and biological properties of GPCRs have been developed with this approach, has provided researchers with a strategy that is more versatile than the classical medicinal chemical approaches.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kenneth A Jacobson
- Molecular Recognition Section, National Institute of Diabetes & Digestive & Kidney Diseases, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD 20892, USA
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13
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Amon M, Ligneau X, Schwartz JC, Stark H. Fluorescent non-imidazole histamine H3 receptor ligands with nanomolar affinities. Bioorg Med Chem Lett 2006; 16:1938-40. [PMID: 16434192 DOI: 10.1016/j.bmcl.2005.12.084] [Citation(s) in RCA: 26] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/02/2005] [Revised: 12/21/2005] [Accepted: 12/21/2005] [Indexed: 11/24/2022]
Abstract
Omega-piperidinoalkanamine derivatives with fluorescent moieties (2-cyanoisoindol-1-yl, 7-nitrobenzofurazan-4-yl) have been synthesized starting from piperidine in three steps. The compounds display moderate to good histamine hH(3) receptor affinities with K(i) values ranging from 178 to 11nM. The new compounds may act as tools for identification and understanding of the binding site on the histamine H(3) receptor.
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Affiliation(s)
- Michael Amon
- Johann Wolfgang Goethe-Universität, ZAFES, Biozentrum, Institut für Pharmazeutische Chemie, 60431 Frankfurt, Germany
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14
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Zarnegar P, Persson AI, Ming Y, Terenius L. Opioid-induced regulation of gene expression in PC12 cells stably transfected with mu-opioid receptor. Neurosci Lett 2005; 396:197-201. [PMID: 16377088 DOI: 10.1016/j.neulet.2005.11.040] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/27/2005] [Revised: 11/16/2005] [Accepted: 11/16/2005] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
Abstract
It has been postulated that opiates induce addictive behaviour via changes in gene expression. PC12 cells were stably transfected with the recombinant human mu-opioid receptor (MOR) to study opioid-induced gene expression. Expression was verified by binding assay, immunocytochemistry, and immunblotting experiments. Forskolin-induced cAMP formation was inhibited by [D-Ala(2), N-Me-Phe(4), Gly(5)-ol]-enkephalin (DAMGO 1 microM), a specific MOR agonist. This effect was completely antagonized by naloxone. By using cDNA arrays, including approximately 1,200 well-defined genes normally expressed in neural tissue, we monitored semi-quantitative changes in gene expression after 3 h short-term exposure to DAMGO. Incubation with DAMGO increased mRNA levels for 13 genes and down-regulated 13 other genes. Annexin V, RGS4 and CREB genes showed pronounced increase in expression after stimulation with DAMGO. Quantitative RT-PCR confirmed that DAMGO increased mRNA levels of Annexin V, an apoptosis-induced gene. We suggest that the PC12 cell transfected with the recombinant human MOR is a useful tool for identification of opioid-induced genes that may provide information on opiate effects of relevance for dependence.
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Affiliation(s)
- Parisa Zarnegar
- Department of Clinical Neuroscience, Center for Molecular Medicine, Karolinska Institutet, SE-171 76 Stockholm, Sweden.
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15
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Yates AS, Doughty SW, Kendall DA, Kellam B. Chemical modification of the naphthoyl 3-position of JWH-015: in search of a fluorescent probe to the cannabinoid CB2 receptor. Bioorg Med Chem Lett 2005; 15:3758-62. [PMID: 15993070 DOI: 10.1016/j.bmcl.2005.05.049] [Citation(s) in RCA: 28] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/21/2005] [Revised: 05/12/2005] [Accepted: 05/17/2005] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Abstract
In silico modelling was used to guide the positioning of the fluorescent dye NBD-F on the cannabinoid CB2 receptor agonist JWH-015. While the ultimate fluorescent conjugate lost extensive binding affinity to the cannabinoid CB2 receptor, affinity and efficacy studies on the naphthoyl 3-position modified precursor molecules have provided new insight into structure-activity relationships associated with this position.
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Affiliation(s)
- Andrew S Yates
- School of Pharmacy, Centre for Biomolecular Sciences, University of Nottingham, University Park, Nottingham NG7 2RD, UK
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16
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Spivak CE, Beglan CL. Kinetics of ?-funaltrexamine binding to wild-type and mutant ?-opioid receptors expressed in Chinese hamster ovary cells. Synapse 2004; 52:123-35. [PMID: 15034918 DOI: 10.1002/syn.20014] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/10/2022]
Abstract
The two-stage reaction whereby the antagonist beta-funaltrexamine (beta-FNA) binds covalently to micro opioid receptors makes it a highly discriminating probe into the tertiary structure of the receptor's recognition pocket. To obtain a quantitative measure of how well this pocket is preserved in a mutated form of the receptor, in which His-297 is substituted with glutamine, we employed [3H]-beta-FNA to evaluate the kinetic rate constants for both the reversible as well as the irreversible stages of its binding to wild-type and mutant H297Q micro receptors stably expressed in Chinese hamster ovary cells. The expression levels of the wild-type and mutant H297Q receptors were matched by exploiting the variation in receptor density as a function of plating day and by raising the expression level by pretreatment with naloxone. We found that all of the kinetic rate constants for [3H]-beta-FNA were diminished by about one-half at the mutant H297Q micro receptors with respect to wild-type receptors. By comparison, the association rate constant of [3H]-naloxone likewise decreased by one-half; however, the dissociation rate constant increased 5-fold at the mutant H297Q receptor. We conclude that the mutation has had only minor influence on the recognition site and that the function of position 297 is more likely as a link in the transduction chain.
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Affiliation(s)
- Charles E Spivak
- Cellular Neurobiology Branch, Intramural Research Program, National Institute on Drug Abuse, National Institutes of Health, DHHS, Baltimore, Maryland 21224, USA.
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17
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Abstract
Fluorescent molecules bound to receptors can show their location and, if binding is reversible, can provide pharmacological information such as affinity and proximity between interacting molecules. The spatial precision offered by visualisation transcends the diverse localisation and low molecular concentration of receptor molecules. Consequently, the relationships between receptor location and function and life cycles of receptors have become better understood as a result of fluorescent labeling. Each of these aspects contributes new insights to drug action and potential new targets. The relationships between spatial distribution of receptor and function are largely unknown. This is particularly apparent for native receptors expressed in their normal host tissues where communication between heterogeneous cell types influences receptor distribution and function. In cultured cell systems, particularly for G-protein-coupled receptors (GPCR), fluorescence-based methods have enabled the visualisation of the cycle of agonist-stimulated receptor clustering, endocytic internalisation to the perinuclear region, degradation of the receptor-ligand complex, and recycling back to the surface membrane. Using variant forms of green fluorescent protein (GFP), antibodies, or fluorescent ligands, it is possible to detect or visualise the formation of oligomeric receptor complexes. Careful selection of fluorescent molecules based on their spectral properties enables resonance energy transfer and multilabel visualisation with colocalisation studies. Fluorescent agonist and antagonist ligands are now being used in parallel with GFP to study receptor cycling in live cells. This review covers how labeling and visualisation technologies have been applied to the study of major pharmacologically important receptors and illustrates this by giving examples of recent techniques that have relied on GFP, antibodies, or fluorescent ligands alone or in combination for the purpose of studying GPCR.
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Affiliation(s)
- Craig J Daly
- Faculty of Biomedical and Life Sciences, Division of Neuroscience and Biomedical Systems, University of Glasgow, Wolfson Building (Office 448), West Medical Building (Lab 440), University Avenue, G12 8QQ, Glasgow, UK.
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18
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Berque-Bestel I, Soulier JL, Giner M, Rivail L, Langlois M, Sicsic S. Synthesis and characterization of the first fluorescent antagonists for human 5-HT4 receptors. J Med Chem 2003; 46:2606-20. [PMID: 12801225 DOI: 10.1021/jm0307887] [Citation(s) in RCA: 51] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
Abstract
Fluorescent antagonists for human 5-HT(4) receptors were synthesized based on ML10302 1, a potent 5-HT(4) receptor agonist and on piperazine analogue 2. These molecules were derived with three fluorescent moieties, dansyl, naphthalimide, and NBD (7-nitrobenz-2-oxa-1,3-diazol-4-yl), through alkyl chains. The synthesized molecules were evaluated in binding assays on the recently cloned human 5-HT(4(e)) receptor isoform stably expressed in C6 glial cells with [(3)H]GR113808 as the radioligand. The affinity values depended upon the basal structure together with the alkyl chain length. The derivatives based on ML10302 were more potent ligands than the derivatives based on piperazine analogue. For ML10302-based ligands, dansyl and NBD derivatives attached through a chain length of one carbon atom 17a and 32, respectively, led to affinities close to the affinity of ML10302. The most potent compounds 17a, 28, and 32 produced an inhibition of the 5-HT stimulated cyclic AMP synthesis in the same cellular system with nanomolar K(b) values. Fluorescent properties of 17a, 28, and 32 were more particularly studied. Interactions of the fluorescent ligand 28 with the h5-HT(4(e)) receptor were indicated using h5-HT(4(e)) receptor transfected C6 glial cell membranes and entire cells. Ligand 28 was also used in fluorescence microscopy experiments in order to label h5-HT(4(e)) receptor transfected C6 glial cells, and subcellular localization of these receptors was more precisely determined using confocal microscopy.
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Affiliation(s)
- Isabelle Berque-Bestel
- Biocis, UMR C8076 (CNRS), Faculté de Pharmacie, 5, rue Jean-Baptiste Clément, 92296 Châtenay-Malabry, France
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19
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Affiliation(s)
- J C McGrath
- Autonomic Physiology Unit, Institute of Biomedical and Life Sciences, University of Glasgow, Glasgow G12 8QQ, Scotland.
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