Publication Abstract from PubMed
The corticotropin-releasing factor (CRF) ligand family has diverse effects on the CNS, including the modulation of the stress response. The ligands' effects are mediated by binding to CRF G protein-coupled receptors. We have determined the 3D NMR structure of the N-terminal extracellular domain (ECD1) of the mouse CRF receptor 2beta, which is the major ligand recognition domain, and identified its ligand binding site by chemical-shift perturbation experiments. The fold is identified as a short consensus repeat (SCR), a common protein interaction module. Mutagenesis reveals the integrity of the hormone-binding site in the full-length receptor. This study proposes that the ECD1 captures the C-terminal segment of the ligand, whose N terminus then penetrates into the transmembrane region of the receptor to initiate signaling. Key residues of SCR in the ECD1 are conserved in the G protein-coupled receptor subfamily, suggesting the SCR fold in all of the ECD1s of this subfamily.
NMR structure and peptide hormone binding site of the first extracellular domain of a type B1 G protein-coupled receptor.,Grace CR, Perrin MH, DiGruccio MR, Miller CL, Rivier JE, Vale WW, Riek R Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 2004 Aug 31;101(35):12836-41. Epub 2004 Aug 23. PMID:15326300[1]
From MEDLINE®/PubMed®, a database of the U.S. National Library of Medicine.