title: Generating thermostabilized agonist-bound GPR40/FFAR1 using virus-like particles and a label-free binding assay.
abstract: Elucidating the detailed mechanism of activation of membrane protein receptors and their ligand binding is essential for structure-based drug design. Membrane protein crystal structure analysis successfully aids in understanding these fundamental molecular interactions. However, protein crystal structure analysis of the G-protein-coupled receptor (GPCR) remains challenging, even for the class of GPCRs which have been included in the majority of structure analysis reports among membrane proteins, due to the substantial instability of these receptors when extracted from lipid bilayer membranes. It is known that increased thermostability tends to decrease conformational flexibility, which contributes to the generation of diffraction quality crystals. However, this is still not straightforward, and significant effort is required to identify thermostabilized mutants that are optimal for crystallography. To address this issue, a versatile screening platform based on a label-free ligand binding assay combined with transient overexpression in virus-like particles was developed. This platform was used to generate thermostabilized GPR40 [also known as free fatty acid receptor 1 (FFAR1)] for fasiglifam (TAK-875). This demonstrated that the thermostabilized mutant GPR40 (L42A/F88A/G103A/Y202F) was successfully used for crystal structure analysis.
authors: Biomolecular Research Laboratories, Pharmaceutical Research Division, Takeda Pharmaceutical Company Ltd , Fujisawa, Kanagawa , Japan.
authors: Yoshihiko
authors: Y
authors: Hirozane
authors: Takashi
authors: T
authors: Motoyaji
authors: Takamitsu
authors: T
authors: Maru
authors: Kengo
authors: K
authors: Okada
authors: Naoki
authors: N
authors: Tarui
mesh_terms: D001572:Benzofurans / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000378:metabolism; D002460:Cell Line; D006801:Humans; D008024:Ligands; D008051:Lipid Bilayers / Q000737:chemistry / Q000378:metabolism; D008565:Membrane Proteins / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000378:metabolism; D009154:Mutation; D011485:Protein Binding; D055550:Protein Stability; D043562:Receptors, G-Protein-Coupled / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism; D013194:Staining and Labeling; D013450:Sulfones / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000378:metabolism; D013696:Temperature
chemical_list: D001572:Benzofurans; C473034:FFAR1 protein, human; D008024:Ligands; D008051:Lipid Bilayers; D008565:Membrane Proteins; D043562:Receptors, G-Protein-Coupled; D013450:Sulfones; C557331:TAK-875
keywords: GPR40/FFAR1; size exclusion chromatography/liquid chromatography mass spectroscopy-based binding assay; thermostabilized mutant; virus-like particle