G protein-coupled receptor kinase 5 is a member of the G protein-coupled receptor kinase subfamily of the Ser/Thr

protein kinase A protein kinase is a kinase which selectively modifies other proteins by covalently adding phosphates to them (phosphorylation) as opposed to kinases which modify lipids, carbohydrates, or other molecules. Phosphorylation usually results in a fu ...

s, and is most highly similar to GRK4 and

GRK6 This gene encodes a member of the G protein-coupled receptor kinase subfamily of the Ser/Thr protein kinase family, and is most highly similar to GRK4 and GRK5. The protein phosphorylates the activated forms of G protein-coupled receptors to ...

. The protein

phosphorylates In chemistry, phosphorylation is the attachment of a phosphate group to a molecule or an ion. This process and its inverse, dephosphorylation, are common in biology and could be driven by natural selection. Text was copied from this source, whi ...

the activated forms of

G protein-coupled receptors 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 ...

to regulate their

signaling In signal processing, a signal is a function that conveys information about a phenomenon. Any quantity that can vary over space or time can be used as a signal to share messages between observers. The '' IEEE Transactions on Signal Processing' ...

Function

G protein-coupled receptor kinases phosphorylate activated G protein-coupled receptors, which promotes the binding of an arrestin protein to the receptor. Arrestin binding to phosphorylated, active receptor prevents receptor stimulation of

heterotrimeric G protein Heterotrimeric G protein, also sometimes referred to as the ''"large" G proteins'' (as opposed to the subclass of smaller, monomeric small GTPases) are membrane-associated G proteins that form a heterotrimeric complex. The biggest non-structu ...

transducer proteins, blocking their cellular signaling and resulting in receptor desensitization. Arrestin binding also directs receptors to specific cellular internalization pathways, removing the receptors from the cell surface and also preventing additional activation. Arrestin binding to phosphorylated, active receptor also enables receptor signaling through arrestin partner proteins. Thus the GRK/arrestin system serves as a complex signaling switch for G protein-coupled receptors. GRK5 and the closely related GRK6 phosphorylate receptors at sites that encourage arrestin-mediated signaling rather than arrestin-mediated receptor desensitization, internalization and trafficking (in contrast to GRK2 and GRK3, which have the opposite effect). This difference is one basis for pharmacological biased agonism (also called

functional selectivity Functional selectivity (or “agonist trafficking”, “biased agonism”, “biased signaling”, "ligand bias" and “differential engagement”) is the ligand-dependent selectivity for certain signal transduction pathways relative to a referen ...

), where a drug binding to a receptor may bias that receptor’s signaling toward a particular subset of the actions stimulated by that receptor. GRK5 is widely expressed throughout the body, but with notably high expression in the lung, heart and placenta, with widespread expression at lower levels. In humans, a GRK5 sequence polymorphism at residue 41 (leucine rather than glutamine) that is most common in individuals with African ancestry leads to elevated GRK5-mediated desensitization of airway beta2-adrenergic receptors, a drug target in

asthma Asthma is a long-term inflammatory disease of the airways of the lungs. It is characterized by variable and recurring symptoms, reversible airflow obstruction, and easily triggered bronchospasms. Symptoms include episodes of wheezing, c ...

. In the mouse, GRK5 regulates the M2 subtype of

Muscarinic acetylcholine receptor Muscarinic acetylcholine receptors, or mAChRs, are acetylcholine receptors that form G protein-coupled receptor, G protein-coupled receptor complexes in the cell membranes of certain neurons and other Cell (biology), cells. They play several r ...

s in airways and neurons, and mice lacking GRK5 have been proposed as a model for

Alzheimer’s disease Alzheimer's disease (AD) is a neurodegenerative disease that usually starts slowly and progressively worsens. It is the cause of 60–70% of cases of dementia. The most common early symptom is difficulty in remembering recent events. As ...

. In zebrafish and in humans, loss of GRK5 function has been associated with heart defects due to heterotaxy, a series of developmental defects arising from improper left-right laterality during

organogenesis Organogenesis is the phase of embryonic development that starts at the end of gastrulation and continues until birth. During organogenesis, the three germ layers formed from gastrulation (the ectoderm, endoderm, and mesoderm) form the internal ...

. Overexpression of GRK5 in the heart of mice has shown that GRK5 regulates beta2-adrenergic receptors, but GRK5 overexpression or deletion does not affect signaling by the angiotensin II AT1 receptor in the heart.

Function

References

Further reading