Five papers have been published this year by collaborations headed by the Scripps Research Institute laboratory of Professor Raymond Stevens. The studies shed light on a large and medically important family of proteins called G protein-coupled receptors (GPCRs).
GPCRs sit in the cell membrane and sense various molecules outside the cell, including odors, hormones, neurotransmitters, and light. After binding these molecules, GPCRs trigger a specific response inside the cell. Many drugs, including allergy and heart medication and drugs for Parkinson’s and Huntington’s disease, target these proteins.
Read the rest of the story at Scripps Research Institute.
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