• Biomolecules & Therapeutics
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• v.15 no.1
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• pp.52-57
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• 2007

Lysolipids such as lysophosphatidylcholine (LPC), sphingosylphosphorylcholine (S PC), galactosylsphingosine (psychosine) have been matched as ligands for OGR1-subfamily G-protein-coupled receptors (GPCR), consisted of OGR1, GPR4, G2A, and TDAG8. Recently, those members of GPCRS have been reported as proton-sensing GPCRs. We used Jurkat T cells, which express four members of OGR1 subfamily GPCRs endogenously to investigate effects of proton on lysolipid-induced several cellular events. We found no significant effect of proton on the lysolipid-induced $Ca^{2+}$ increase and ROS production in Jurkat T cells. Further investigation is necessary to clarify the relationship of lysolipid and proton on the OGR1-subfamily GPCRs.

• Genomics & Informatics
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• v.19 no.1
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• pp.9.1-9.5
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• 2021

Mammalian olfactory receptors are a family of G protein-coupled receptors (GPCRs) that occupy a large part of the genome. In human genes, olfactory receptors account for more than 40% of all GPCRs. Several types of GPCR structures have been identified, but there is no single olfactory receptor whose structure has been determined experimentally to date. The aim of this study was to model the interactions between an olfactory receptor and its ligands at the molecular level to provide hints on the binding modes between the OR2W1 olfactory receptor and its agonists and inverse agonists. The results demonstrated the modes of ligand binding in a three-dimensional model of OR2W1 and showed a statistically significant difference in binding affinity to the olfactory receptor between agonists and inverse agonists.

• Journal of Microbiology
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• v.44 no.2
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• pp.145-154
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• 2006

Heterotrimeric G proteins (G proteins) are conserved in all eukaryotes and are crucial components sensing and relaying external cues into the cells to elicit appropriate physiological and biochemical responses. Basic units of the heterotrimeric G protein signaling system include a G protein-coupled receptor (GPCR), a G protein composed of ${\alpha},\;{\beta},\;and\;{\gamma}$ subunits, and variety of effectors. Sequential sensitization and activation of these G protein elements translates external signals into gene expression changes, resulting in appropriate cellular behaviors. Regulators of G protein signaling (RGSs) constitute a crucial element of appropriate control of the intensity and duration of G protein signaling. For the past decade, G protein signaling and its regulation have been intensively studied in a number of model and/or pathogenic fungi and outcomes of the studies provided better understanding on the upstream regulation of vegetative growth, mating, development, virulence/pathogenicity establishment, and biosynthesis of secondary metabolites in fungi. This review focuses on the characteristics of the basic upstream G protein components and RGS proteins, and their roles controlling various aspects of biological processes in the model filamentous ascomycete fungus Aspergillus nidulans. In particular, their functions in controlling hyphal proliferation, asexual spore formation, sexual fruiting, and the mycotoxin sterigmatocystin production are discussed.

• BMB Reports
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• v.50 no.2
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• pp.71-78
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• 2017

The Hippo signaling pathway plays an essential role in adult-tissue homeostasis and organ-size control. In Drosophila and vertebrates, it consists of a highly conserved kinase cascade, which involves MST and Lats that negatively regulate the activity of the downstream transcription coactivators, YAP and TAZ. By interacting with TEADs and other transcription factors, they mediate both proliferative and antiapoptotic gene expression and thus regulate tissue repair and regeneration. Dysregulation or mutation of the Hippo pathway is linked to tumorigenesis and cancer development. Recent studies have uncovered multiple upstream inputs, including cell density, mechanical stress, G-protein-coupled receptor (GPCR) signaling, and nutrients, that modulate Hippo pathway activity. This review focuses on the role of the Hippo pathway as effector of these biophysical cues and its potential implications in tissue homeostasis and cancer.

• Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences
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• v.10 no.1
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• pp.8-15
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• 2007

Rhodopsin, a dim-light receptor, is a model system for the study of G protein-coupled receptors that transduce extracellular signals into cells. To study the molecular mechanisms of visual systems in fish, the rod opsin gene of olive flounder Paralichthys olivaceus was characterized. The full-length P. olivaceus opsin gene was obtained by PCR amplification of genomic DNA, as well as cDNA synthesis. A comparison of clones obtained from both methods indicated that the olive flounder rod opsin gene lacks introns. Sequence analysis of the opsin gene indicated that it contains a 1,056-bp open reading frame encoding 352 amino acids. The deduced amino acid sequence contains features of typical rod opsins, such as sites for Schiff's base formation (K296) and its counterion (E113), disulfide formation (C110 and C187), and palmitoylation (C322 and C323). An opsin sequence alignment showed the highest similarity between P. olivaceus and Solea solea (95.1%), followed by Hippoglossus hippoglossus (94.5%). An opsin phylogenetic tree revealed a close relationship between olive flounder and teleost rod opsins.

• Bulletin of the Korean Chemical Society
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• v.32 no.6
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• pp.2008-2014
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• 2011

Serotonin or 5-hydroxytryptamine subtype 2C ($5-HT_{2C}$) receptor belongs to class A amine subfamily of G-protein-coupled receptor (GPCR) super family and its ligands has therapeutic promise as anti-depressant and -obesity agents. So far, bovine rhodopsin from class A opsin subfamily was the mostly used X-ray crystal template to model this receptor. Here, we explained homology model using beta 2 adrenergic receptor (${\beta}$2AR), the model was energetically minimized and validated by flexible ligand docking with known agonists and antagonists. In the active site Asp134, Ser138 of transmembrane 3 (TM3), Arg195 of extracellular loop 2 (ECL2) and Tyr358 of TM7 were found as important residues to interact with agonists. In addition to these, V208 of ECL2 and N351 of TM7 was found to interact with antagonists. Several conserved residues including Trp324, Phe327 and Phe328 were also found to contribute hydrophobic interaction. The predicted ligand binding mode is in good agreement with published mutagenesis and homology model data. This new template derived homology model can be useful for further virtual screening based lead identification.

• Molecules and Cells
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• v.37 no.7
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• pp.554-561
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• 2014

Lysophosphatidic acid (LPA) is a lipid growth factor that exerts diverse biological effects through its cognate receptors ($LPA_1-LPA_6$). $LPA_1$, which is predominantly expressed in the brain, plays a pivotal role in brain development. However, the role of $LPA_1$ in neuronal migration has not yet been fully elucidated. Here, we delivered $LPA_1$ to mouse cerebral cortex using in utero electroporation. We demonstrated that neuronal migration in the cerebral cortex was not affected by the overexpression of $LPA_1$. Moreover, these results can be applied to the identification of the localization of $LPA_1$. The subcellular localization of $LPA_1$ was endogenously present in the perinuclear area, and overexpressed $LPA_1$ was located in the plasma membrane. Furthermore, $LPA_1$ in developing mouse cerebral cortex was mainly expressed in the ventricular zone and the cortical plate. In summary, the overexpression of $LPA_1$ did not affect neuronal migration, and the protein expression of $LPA_1$ was mainly located in the ventricular zone and cortical plate within the developing mouse cerebral cortex. These studies have provided information on the role of $LPA_1$ in brain development and on the technical advantages of in utero electroporation.

• Proceedings of the Korean Society for Bioinformatics Conference
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• 2003.10a
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• pp.86-94
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• 2003

Electronically available biological literature has been accumulated exponentially in the course of time. So, researches on automatically acquiring knowledge from these tremendous data by text mining technology become more and more prosperous. However, most of the previous researches are technology oriented and are not well focused in practical extraction target, hence result in low performance and inconvenience for the bio-researchers to actually use. In this paper, we propose a more biology oriented target domain specific text mining system, that is, POSTECH bio-text mining system (POSBIOTM), for signal transduction pathway extraction, especially for G protein-coupled receptor (GPCR) pathway. To reflect more domain knowledge, we specify the concrete target for pathway extraction and define the minimal pathway domain ontology. Under this conceptual model, POSBIOTM extracts interactions and entities of pathways from the full biological articles using a machine learning oriented extraction method and visualizes the pathways using JDesigner module provided in the system biology workbench (SBW) [14]

• Bulletin of the Korean Chemical Society
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• v.28 no.6
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• pp.1005-1009
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• 2007

Leukotriene B4 (LTB4) is a potent chemoattractant for leukocytes and considered to be an inflammatory mediator. Human BLT2 (hBLT2) is a low-affinity G-protein coupled receptor for LTB4 and mediates pertussis toxin-sensitive chemotactic cell movement. Here, we dissected the interaction between hBLT2 and G-protein alpha subunits using GST fusion proteins containing intracellular regions of hBLT2 and various Gα protein including Gα i1, Gα i2, Gα i3, Gα s1, Gα o1, and Gα z. Among the tested Gα subunits, Gα i3 showed the highest binding to the third intracellular loop region of hBLT2 with a dissociation constant (KD) of 5.0 × 10?6 M. These results suggest that Gα i3 has the highest affinity to hBLT2, and the third intracellular loop region of hBLT2 is the major component for the interaction with Gα i3.

• Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention
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• v.13 no.8
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• pp.3561-3568
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• 2012

The calcium sensing receptor (CaSR) is a member of the largest family of cell surface receptors, the G protein-coupled receptors involved in calcium homeostasis. The role of the CaSR in neoplasia appears to be homeostatic; loss of normal CaSR-induced response to extracellular calcium is observed in cancers of the colon and ovary, while increased release of PTHrP is observed in cancers of the breast, prostate and Leydig cells. Currently CaSR can be considered as a molecule that can either promote or prevent tumor growth depending on the type of cancer. Therefore, recognition of the multifaceted role of CaSR in gliomas and other malignant tumors in general is fundamental to elucidating the mechanisms of tumor progression and the development of novel therapeutic agents. Emphasis should be placed on development of drug-targeting methods to modulate CaSR activity in cancer cells.