title: Functional mimicry of a protein hormone by a peptide agonist: the EPO receptor complex at 2.8 A.
abstract: The functional mimicry of a protein by an unrelated small molecule has been a formidable challenge. Now, however, the biological activity of a 166-residue hematopoietic growth hormone, erythropoietin (EPO), with its class 1 cytokine receptor has been mimicked by a 20-residue cyclic peptide unrelated in sequence to the natural ligand. The crystal structure at 2.8 A resolution of a complex of this agonist peptide with the extracellular domain of EPO receptor reveals that a peptide dimer induces an almost perfect twofold dimerization of the receptor. The dimer assembly differs from that of the human growth hormone (hGH) receptor complex and suggests that more than one mode of dimerization may be able to induce signal transduction and cell proliferation. The EPO receptor binding site, defined by peptide interaction, corresponds to the smaller functional epitope identified for hGH receptor. Similarly, the EPO mimetic peptide ligand can be considered as a minimal hormone, and suggests the design of nonpeptidic small molecule mimetics for EPO and other cytokines may indeed be achievable.
authors.affiliation: Department of Molecular Biology and the Skaggs Institute of Chemical Biology, The Scripps Research Institute, 10666 North Torrey Pines Road, La Jolla, CA 92037, USA.
authors.forename: O
authors.initials: O
authors.lastname: Livnah
authors.forename: E A
authors.initials: EA
authors.lastname: Stura
authors.forename: D L
authors.initials: DL
authors.lastname: Johnson
authors.forename: S A
authors.initials: SA
authors.lastname: Middleton
authors.forename: L S
authors.initials: LS
authors.lastname: Mulcahy
authors.forename: N C
authors.initials: NC
authors.lastname: Wrighton
authors.forename: W J
authors.initials: WJ
authors.lastname: Dower
authors.forename: L K
authors.initials: LK
authors.lastname: Jolliffe
authors.forename: I A
authors.initials: IA
authors.lastname: Wilson
mesh_terms: D000595:Amino Acid Sequence; D001665:Binding Sites; D018360:Crystallography, X-Ray; D015195:Drug Design; D004921:Erythropoietin / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000378:metabolism*; D013006:Growth Hormone / Q000737:chemistry / Q000378:metabolism; D006801:Humans; D006860:Hydrogen Bonding; D008958:Models, Molecular; D018716:Molecular Mimicry; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D010456:Peptides, Cyclic / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000378:metabolism*; D011487:Protein Conformation; D017510:Protein Folding; D017433:Protein Structure, Secondary; D017467:Receptors, Erythropoietin / Q000819:agonists* / Q000737:chemistry / Q000378:metabolism; D011986:Receptors, Somatotropin / Q000737:chemistry / Q000378:metabolism
chemical_list: C099963:EPO mimetic peptide 1; D010456:Peptides, Cyclic; D017467:Receptors, Erythropoietin; D011986:Receptors, Somatotropin; D004921:Erythropoietin; D013006:Growth Hormone