G-protein-coupled receptors in insect cells.
The main classes of transmembrane signaling receptor proteins are well conserved during evolution and are encountered in vertebrates as well as in invertebrates. All members of the G-protein-coupled receptor superfamily share a number of basic structural and functional characteristics. In both insects and mammals, this receptor class is involved in the perception and transduction of many important extracellular signals, including a great deal of paracrine, endocrine, and neuronal messengers and visual, olfactory and gustatory stimuli. Therefore, most of the receptor subclasses appear to have originated several hundred million years ago, before the divergence of the major animal Phyla took place. Nevertheless, many insect-specific molecular interactions are encountered and these could become interesting tools for future applications, e.g., in insect pest control. Insect cell lines are well suited for large-scale expression and characterization of cloned receptor genes. Furthermore, novel methods for the production of stably transformed insect cells may form a major breakthrough for insect signal transduction research.
Vanden Broeck
J J
JJ
Department of Biology, Zoological Institute K. U. Leuven, Belgium.
D000595:Amino Acid Sequence; D000818:Animals; D019204:GTP-Binding Proteins; D006801:Humans; D007313:Insecta / Q000166:cytology / Q000378:metabolism*; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D011956:Receptors, Cell Surface / Q000145:classification
D011956:Receptors, Cell Surface; D019204:GTP-Binding Proteins