Corticotropin-releasing hormone receptors (CRHRs), also known as corticotropin-releasing factor receptors (CRFRs) are a

G protein-coupled receptor G protein-coupled receptors (GPCRs), also known as seven-(pass)-transmembrane domain receptors, 7TM receptors, heptahelical receptors, serpentine receptors, and G protein-linked receptors (GPLR), form a large group of evolutionarily-related p ...

family that binds corticotropin-releasing hormone (CRH). There are two receptors in the family, designated as type 1 and 2, each encoded by a separate

gene In biology, the word gene (from , ; "...Wilhelm Johannsen coined the word gene to describe the Mendelian units of heredity..." meaning ''generation'' or ''birth'' or ''gender'') can have several different meanings. The Mendelian gene is a b ...

( and respectively).

Function

CRHRs are important mediators in the

stress Stress may refer to: Science and medicine * Stress (biology), an organism's response to a stressor such as an environmental condition * Stress (linguistics), relative emphasis or prominence given to a syllable in a word, or to a word in a phrase ...

response. Cells in the

anterior lobe The anterior lobe of cerebellum is the portion of the cerebellum responsible for mediating unconscious proprioception. Inputs into the anterior lobe of the cerebellum are mainly from the spinal cord. It is sometimes equated to the "paleocerebellum ...

of the

pituitary gland In vertebrate anatomy, the pituitary gland, or hypophysis, is an endocrine gland, about the size of a chickpea and weighing, on average, in humans. It is a protrusion off the bottom of the hypothalamus at the base of the brain. The h ...

known as

corticotropes Corticotropes (or corticotrophs) are basophilic cells in the anterior pituitary that produce pro-opiomelanocortin (POMC) which undergoes cleavage to adrenocorticotropin (ACTH), β-lipotropin (β-LPH), and melanocyte-stimulating hormone (MSH). Thes ...

express the receptors and will secrete adrenocorticotropic hormone (ACTH) when stimulated. This binding of corticotropin releasing-hormone (CRH) activates the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis, one of the two parts of the fight-or-flight response to stress. CRHRs are also present in other brain areas such as the

amygdala The amygdala (; plural: amygdalae or amygdalas; also '; Latin from Greek, , ', 'almond', 'tonsil') is one of two almond-shaped clusters of nuclei located deep and medially within the temporal lobes of the brain's cerebrum in complex ver ...

locus coeruleus The locus coeruleus () (LC), also spelled locus caeruleus or locus ceruleus, is a nucleus in the pons of the brainstem involved with physiological responses to stress and panic. It is a part of the reticular activating system. The locus coer ...

and

hippocampus The hippocampus (via Latin from Greek , 'seahorse') is a major component of the brain of humans and other vertebrates. Humans and other mammals have two hippocampi, one in each side of the brain. The hippocampus is part of the limbic syste ...

. Within the hippocampus, the CRHR1s are most abundant, residing mainly on the

pyramidal cells Pyramidal cells, or pyramidal neurons, are a type of multipolar neuron found in areas of the brain including the cerebral cortex, the hippocampus, and the amygdala. Pyramidal neurons are the primary excitation units of the mammalian prefrontal cor ...

of CA1 and CA3. Chronic activation of CRHR1s by CRH induced by early life stress has been shown to underlie memory deficits and learning impairments and anxiety in adulthood.

References

External links

* * Corticotropin-releasing hormone {{cell-biology-stub