{"title":"Optical Approaches for Investigating Neuromodulation and G Protein-Coupled Receptor Signaling.","authors":"David J Marcus, Michael R Bruchas","doi":"10.1124/pharmrev.122.000584","DOIUrl":null,"url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Despite the fact that roughly 40% of all US Food and Drug Administration (FDA)-approved pharmacological therapeutics target G protein-coupled receptors (GPCRs), there remains a gap in our understanding of the physiologic and functional role of these receptors at the systems level. Although heterologous expression systems and in vitro assays have revealed a tremendous amount about GPCR signaling cascades, how these cascades interact across cell types, tissues, and organ systems remains obscure. Classic behavioral pharmacology experiments lack both the temporal and spatial resolution to resolve these long-standing issues. Over the past half century, there has been a concerted effort toward the development of optical tools for understanding GPCR signaling. From initial ligand uncaging approaches to more recent development of optogenetic techniques, these strategies have allowed researchers to probe longstanding questions in GPCR pharmacology both in vivo and in vitro. These tools have been employed across biologic systems and have allowed for interrogation of everything from specific intramolecular events to pharmacology at the systems level in a spatiotemporally specific manner. In this review, we present a historical perspective on the motivation behind and development of a variety of optical toolkits that have been generated to probe GPCR signaling. Here we highlight how these tools have been used in vivo to uncover the functional role of distinct populations of GPCRs and their signaling cascades at a systems level. SIGNIFICANCE STATEMENT: G protein-coupled receptors (GPCRs) remain one of the most targeted classes of proteins for pharmaceutical intervention, yet we still have a limited understanding of how their unique signaling cascades effect physiology and behavior at the systems level. In this review, we discuss a vast array of optical techniques that have been devised to probe GPCR signaling both in vitro and in vivo.</p>","PeriodicalId":19780,"journal":{"name":"Pharmacological Reviews","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":19.3000,"publicationDate":"2023-11-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC10595021/pdf/","citationCount":"0","resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":null,"PeriodicalName":"Pharmacological Reviews","FirstCategoryId":"3","ListUrlMain":"https://doi.org/10.1124/pharmrev.122.000584","RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":null,"EPubDate":"2023/7/10 0:00:00","PubModel":"Epub","JCR":"Q1","JCRName":"PHARMACOLOGY & PHARMACY","Score":null,"Total":0}
引用次数: 0
Abstract
Despite the fact that roughly 40% of all US Food and Drug Administration (FDA)-approved pharmacological therapeutics target G protein-coupled receptors (GPCRs), there remains a gap in our understanding of the physiologic and functional role of these receptors at the systems level. Although heterologous expression systems and in vitro assays have revealed a tremendous amount about GPCR signaling cascades, how these cascades interact across cell types, tissues, and organ systems remains obscure. Classic behavioral pharmacology experiments lack both the temporal and spatial resolution to resolve these long-standing issues. Over the past half century, there has been a concerted effort toward the development of optical tools for understanding GPCR signaling. From initial ligand uncaging approaches to more recent development of optogenetic techniques, these strategies have allowed researchers to probe longstanding questions in GPCR pharmacology both in vivo and in vitro. These tools have been employed across biologic systems and have allowed for interrogation of everything from specific intramolecular events to pharmacology at the systems level in a spatiotemporally specific manner. In this review, we present a historical perspective on the motivation behind and development of a variety of optical toolkits that have been generated to probe GPCR signaling. Here we highlight how these tools have been used in vivo to uncover the functional role of distinct populations of GPCRs and their signaling cascades at a systems level. SIGNIFICANCE STATEMENT: G protein-coupled receptors (GPCRs) remain one of the most targeted classes of proteins for pharmaceutical intervention, yet we still have a limited understanding of how their unique signaling cascades effect physiology and behavior at the systems level. In this review, we discuss a vast array of optical techniques that have been devised to probe GPCR signaling both in vitro and in vivo.
期刊介绍:
Pharmacological Reviews is a highly popular and well-received journal that has a long and rich history of success. It was first published in 1949 and is currently published bimonthly online by the American Society for Pharmacology and Experimental Therapeutics. The journal is indexed or abstracted by various databases, including Biological Abstracts, BIOSIS Previews Database, Biosciences Information Service, Current Contents/Life Sciences, EMBASE/Excerpta Medica, Index Medicus, Index to Scientific Reviews, Medical Documentation Service, Reference Update, Research Alerts, Science Citation Index, and SciSearch. Pharmacological Reviews offers comprehensive reviews of new pharmacological fields and is able to stay up-to-date with published content. Overall, it is highly regarded by scholars.