[HTML][HTML] Differential signaling profiles of MC4R mutations with three different ligands

S Paisdzior, IM Dimitriou, PC Schöpe… - International Journal of …, 2020 - mdpi.com
S Paisdzior, IM Dimitriou, PC Schöpe, P Annibale, P Scheerer, H Krude, MJ Lohse
International Journal of Molecular Sciences, 2020mdpi.com
The melanocortin 4 receptor (MC4R) is a key player in hypothalamic weight regulation and
energy expenditure as part of the leptin–melanocortin pathway. Mutations in this G protein
coupled receptor (GPCR) are the most common cause for monogenetic obesity, which
appears to be mediated by changes in the anorectic action of MC4R via GS-dependent
cyclic adenosine-monophosphate (cAMP) signaling as well as other signaling pathways. To
study potential bias in the effects of MC4R mutations between the different signaling …
The melanocortin 4 receptor (MC4R) is a key player in hypothalamic weight regulation and energy expenditure as part of the leptin–melanocortin pathway. Mutations in this G protein coupled receptor (GPCR) are the most common cause for monogenetic obesity, which appears to be mediated by changes in the anorectic action of MC4R via GS-dependent cyclic adenosine-monophosphate (cAMP) signaling as well as other signaling pathways. To study potential bias in the effects of MC4R mutations between the different signaling pathways, we investigated three major MC4R mutations: a GS loss-of-function (S127L) and a GS gain-of-function mutant (H158R), as well as the most common European single nucleotide polymorphism (V103I). We tested signaling of all four major G protein families plus extracellular regulated kinase (ERK) phosphorylation and β-arrestin2 recruitment, using the two endogenous agonists, α- and β-melanocyte stimulating hormone (MSH), along with a synthetic peptide agonist (NDP-α-MSH). The S127L mutation led to a full loss-of-function in all investigated pathways, whereas V103I and H158R were clearly biased towards the Gq/11 pathway when challenged with the endogenous ligands. These results show that MC4R mutations can cause vastly different changes in the various MC4R signaling pathways and highlight the importance of a comprehensive characterization of receptor mutations.
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