• Biomolecules & Therapeutics
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• v.18 no.2
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• pp.152-158
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• 2010

Melanin concentrating hormone is a neuropeptide highly expressed in the brain that regulates several physiological functions mediated by receptors in the G-protein coupled receptor family, especially plays an important role in the complex regulation of energy balance and body weight mediated by the melanin concentrating hormone receptor subtype 1 (MCH1). Compelling pharmacological evidence implicating MCH1 signaling in the regulation of food intake and energy expenditure has generated a great deal of interest by pharmaceutical companies as MCH1 antagonists may have potential therapeutic benefit in the treatment of obesity and metabolic syndrome. Although fluorescence-based calcium mobilization assay platform has been one of the most widely accepted tools for receptor research and drug discovery, fluorescence interference and shallow assay window limit their application in high throughput screening and have led to a growing interest in alternative, luminescence-based technologies. Herein, a luminescence-based functional assay system for the MCH1 receptor was developed and validated with the mitochondrial targeted aequorin. Aequorin based functional assay system for MCH1 presented excellent Z' factor (0.8983) and high signal-to-noise ratio (141.9). The nonpeptide MCH1 receptor antagonist, SNAP 7941 and GSK 803430, exhibited $IC_{50}$ values of 0.62 ${\pm}$ 0.11 and 12.29 ${\pm}$ 2.31 nM with excellent correlation coefficient. These results suggest that the aequorin based assay system for MCH1 is a strong alternative to the traditional GPCR related tools such as radioligand binding experiments and fluorescence functional determinations for the compound screening and receptor research.

• Molecules and Cells
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• v.22 no.2
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• pp.198-202
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• 2006

The $P2X_7$ receptor, an ATP-gated cation channel, induces cell death in immune cells and is involved in neurodegenerative diseases. Although the receptor plays various roles in these diseases, the cellular mechanisms involved are poorly understood and antagonists are limited. Here, the development of a cell-based assay for human $P2X_7$ receptor is reported. We established permanent lines of HEK 293 cells expressing a high level of $hP2X_7$ receptor. Functional activity of the $hP2X_7$ receptor was confirmed by whole-cell patch recording of ATP-induced ion currents. Prolonged exposure to ATP resulted in death of the $hP2X_7$-expressing HEK 293 cells and this cell death could be quantified. Two known $P2X_7$ antagonists, PPADS and KN-62, blocked ATP-induced death in a concentration-dependent manner. Thus, this assay can be used to screen for new antagonists of $hP2X_7$ receptors.

• Biomolecules & Therapeutics
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• v.19 no.1
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• pp.1-8
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• 2011

G-protein coupled receptors (GPCRs) constitute an important class of drug targets and are involved in every aspect of human physiology including sleep regulation, blood pressure, mood, food intake, perception of pain, control of cancer growth, and immune response. Radiometric assays have been the classic method used during the search for potential therapeutics acting at various GPCRs for most GPCR-based drug discovery research programs. An increasing number of diverse small molecules, together with novel GPCR targets identified from genomics efforts, necessitates the use of high-throughput assays with a good sensitivity and specificity. Currently, a wide array of high-throughput tools for research on GPCRs is available and can be used to study receptor-ligand interaction, receptor driven functional response, receptor-receptor interaction,and receptor internalization. Many of the assay technologies are based on luminescence or fluorescence and can be easily applied in cell based models to reduce gaps between in vitro and in vivo studies for drug discovery processes. Especially, cell based models for GPCR can be efficiently employed to deconvolute the integrated information concerning the ligand-receptor-function axis obtained from label-free detection technology. This review covers various platform technologies used for the research of GPCRs, concentrating on the principal, non-radiometric homogeneous assay technologies. As current technology is rapidly advancing, the combination of probe chemistry, optical instruments, and GPCR biology will provide us with many new technologies to apply in the future.

• Toxicological Research
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• v.17 no.1
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• pp.65-71
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• 2001

The key targets of endocrine disruptors are nuclear hormone receptors, which bind to steroid hormones and regulate their gene transcription. A yeast-based steroid hormone receptor gene trascription assay was previously developed for the evaluation of chemicals with endocrine modulating activity. The yeast transformants used in this assay contain the human estrogen receptor along with the appropriate steroid response elements upstream of the $\beta$-galactosidase reporter gene. We tried to evaluate several natural and synthetic steroids of their potential to interact directly with the steroid receptor. Some putative endocrine disruptors, including nonylphenol, are weakly estrogenic. But the combined treatment oj these chemicals with di-(2-ethylhexyl)phthalate (DEHP) significantly increased the $\beta$-galactosidase activity in the yeast transformant. These results suggest that we also have to consider the synergistic effects of endocrine disruptors. In this study, we showed that yeast-based bioassay is a valuable tool for screening potential endocrine disruptors and quantitative determination of estrogenicity. And the possibility that the estrogen receptor binds multiple environmental chemicals adds another level of complexity to the interaction between the endocrine disruptors and the human hormone system.

• Korean Journal of Pharmacognosy
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• v.37 no.1 s.144
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• pp.21-27
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• 2006

Yeast based estrogenicity assay is the simplest and useful for the assay and the discovery of novel estrogenic substances in natural specimens, The estrogen receptor(ER) modulation activity of 50% EtOH extracts of 101 traditional medicinal herbs was assessed using a recombinant yeast assay system with both a human estrogen receptor expression plasmid and a receptor plasmid. Among them, 14 species proved to be active. Pureariae Flos (flower of Puerraria thunbergiana BENTH.) had the highest estrogenic relative potency$(7.75{\times}10^{-3})$ $(EC_{50}=9.39\;{\mu}g/ml)$. The $EC_{50}$ value of $17{\beta}-estradiol$ used as the positive control was $0.073\;{\mu}g/ml)$ (Relative Potency=1.00). There results demonstrated that some of the traditional medical herb may be useful in the therapy of estrogen replacement.

• KSBB Journal
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• v.22 no.6
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• pp.426-432
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• 2007

We have developed a sensitive, one-step, homogeneous open sandwich fluoroimmunoassay (OsFIA) based on fluorescence resonance energy transfer (FRET) and luminescent semiconductor quantum dots (QDs). In this FRET assay, estrogen receptor-$\beta$ (ER-$\beta$) antigen was incubated with QD-labeled anti-ER-$\beta$ monoclonal antibody and AF (Alexa Fluoro)-labeled anti-ER polyclonal antibody for 30 minutes, followed by FRET measurement. The dye separation distance was estimated to be between $80\sim90\;{\AA}$. The present method is rapid, simple and highly sensitive, and did not require the bound/free reagent separation steps and solid-phase carriers. A concentration as low as 0.05 nM (2.65 ng/ml) receptor was detected with linearity ($R^2$ > 0.990). In addition, the assay was performed with commercial antibodies. This assay provides a convenient alternative to conventional, laborious sandwich immunoassays.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.29 no.9
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• pp.1470-1477
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• 2019

${\beta}_2$-adrenergic receptor (${\beta}_2-AR$) was expressed efficiently using Bac-to-Bac Baculovirus Expression System in Sf9 cells as a bio-recognition element for multianalyte screening of ${\beta}$-agonist residues in pork. Sf9 cells were selected as the expression system, and codon optimization of wild-type nucleic acid sequence and time-dependent screening of expression conditions were then carried out for enhancing expression level and biological activity. Under optimum conditions of multiplicity of infection (MOI) = 5 and 48 h post transfection, the protein yield was up to 1.23 mg/ml. After purification by chromatographic techniques, the purified recombinant protein was applied to develop a direct competitive enzyme-linked receptor assay (ELRA) and the efficiency and reliability of the assay was determined. The IC50 values of clenbuterol, salbutamol, and ractopamine were 28.36, 50.70, and $59.57{\mu}g/l$, and clenbuterol showed 47.61% and 55.94% cross-reactivities with ractopamine and salbutamol, respectively. The limit of detection (LOD) was $3.2{\mu}g/l$ and the relevant recoveries in pork samples were in the range of 73.0-91.2%, 69.4-84.6%, and 63.7-80.2%, respectively. The results showed that it had better performance compared with other present nonradioactive receptorbased assays, indicating that the genetically modified ${\beta}_2-AR$ would have great application potential in detection of ${\beta}$-agonist residues.

• Journal of the Korea Academia-Industrial cooperation Society
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• v.17 no.11
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• pp.640-647
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• 2016

By minimizing fluorescence interference phenomena, aequorin-based luminescence technology can provide a relatively sensitive detection platform with integration of $G{\alpha}16$ protein in order to track internal calcium mobilization by G protein-coupled receptors (GPCR). In this type of cell-based functional assay format, it is essential to optimize the transfection process of a receptor and $G{\alpha}16$ protein. For this study, corticotropin releasing factor receptor subtype 2(CRF2) was set as a model system to generate three stable cells with CRF2 and $G{\alpha}16$ in addition to transiently transfected cells under three different conditions. Agonist (sauvagine) and antagonist (K41498) responses in those cells were analyzed to develop the optimum transfection process. As a result, the effective signal ratio in the dose response experiments of sauvagine and K41498 were at least 10-fold higher (z'=0.77) in CRF2-$G{\alpha}16$ stable cells. For the transient transfection cells, stable expression of $G{\alpha}16$ prior to the CRF2 represented a two-fold higher signal (z'=0.84) than the other cases of transient transfection. In conclusion, for the utilization of transient transfection processes to develop a cell-based GPCR functional assay system, it is suggested to introduce various target receptors after stable expression of $G{\alpha}16$ protein.

• Natural Product Sciences
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• v.20 no.4
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• pp.281-284
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• 2014

In this study, twenty-one oleanane-type triterpenoid saponins were isolated from a methanol extract of the roots of Pulsatilla koreana. Antagonistic activities were measured in these compounds by the aequorin based cellular functional assay system for the corticotropin releasing factor receptor (CRF1). Of them, compounds 7 - 10 showed the highest degree of CRF1 inhibition further at the concentration of $10{\mu}M$. Moreover, by the analysis based on the structure-activity relationship of isolated saponins, a sugar chain at C-3 and a carboxyl group at C-28, as well as a methyl group at C-23 seems to be key functional elements. To our knowledge, this is the first report on CRF1 inhibition of saponins from P. koreana.

• Journal of the Korea Academia-Industrial cooperation Society
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• v.16 no.11
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• pp.7575-7581
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• 2015

Corticotropin-releasing factor(CRF), one of the stress driven neuropeptides, was widely proposed to influence hair loss and re-growth. For the development of receptor antagonists, the screening system based on intracellular calcium signal process was developed and optimized. The aequorin parental cells were transfected with CRF1 receptor and alpha 16 promiscuous G protein cDNA to establish HEK293a16/hCRF1, a stable cell line for the human CRF1 receptor. In HEK293a16/hCRF1 cells, the range of sauvagine dose response was 12-fold higher($EC_{50}:15.21{\pm}1.83nM$) than in the transiently expressed cells, hence essential conditions for the antagonist screening experiments such as the robust signals and high solvent tolerance were secured. The standard antagonists for the CRF1 receptor, antalarmin and CP154526, resulted $IC_{50}$ values of $414.1{\pm}5.5$ and $290.7{\pm}1.9nM$, respectively. Similar results were presented with frozen HEK293a16/hCRF1 cells. Finally, our HEK293a16/hCRF1 cells with the aequorin based cellular functional assay can be a model system for the development of functional cosmetics and modulators that can have a clinical efficacy on hair re-growth.