G-protein coupling of mu-opioid receptors (OP3): elevated basal signalling activity.
Ontology highlight
ABSTRACT:
SUBMITTER: Burford NT
PROVIDER: S-EPMC1221094 | biostudies-other | 2000 Jun
REPOSITORIES: biostudies-other
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Project description:We have compared the ability of a number of μ-opioid receptor (MOPr) ligands to activate G proteins with their abilities to induce MOPr phosphorylation, to promote association of arrestin-3 and to cause MOPr internalization. For a model of G protein-coupled receptor (GPCR) activation where all agonists stabilize a single active conformation of the receptor, a close correlation between signaling outputs might be expected. Our results show that overall there is a very good correlation between efficacy for G protein activation and arrestin-3 recruitment, whereas a few agonists, in particular endomorphins 1 and 2, display apparent bias toward arrestin recruitment. The agonist-induced phosphorylation of MOPr at Ser(375), considered a key step in MOPr regulation, and agonist-induced internalization of MOPr were each found to correlate well with arrestin-3 recruitment. These data indicate that for the majority of MOPr agonists the ability to induce receptor phosphorylation, arrestin-3 recruitment, and internalization can be predicted from their ability as agonists to activate G proteins. For the prototypic MOPr agonist morphine, its relatively weak ability to induce MOPr internalization can be explained by its low agonist efficacy.
| S-EPMC2981392 | biostudies-literature
Project description:The role of Mu opioid receptor (MOR)-mediated regulation of GABA transmission in opioid reward is well established. Much less is known about MOR-mediated regulation of glutamate transmission in the brain and how this relates to drug reward. We previously found that MORs inhibit glutamate transmission at synapses that express the Type 2 vesicular glutamate transporter (vGluT2). We created a transgenic mouse that lacks MORs in vGluT2-expressing neurons (MORflox-vGluT2cre) to demonstrate that MORs on the vGluT2 neurons themselves mediate this synaptic inhibition. We then explored the role of MORs in vGluT2-expressing neurons in opioid-related behaviors. In tests of conditioned place preference, MORflox-vGluT2cre mice did not acquire place preference for a low dose of the opioid, oxycodone, but displayed conditioned place aversion at a higher dose, whereas control mice displayed preference for both doses. In an oral consumption assessment, these mice consumed less oxycodone and had reduced preference for oxycodone compared with controls. MORflox-vGluT2cre mice also failed to show oxycodone-induced locomotor stimulation. These mice displayed baseline withdrawal-like responses following the development of oxycodone dependence that were not seen in littermate controls. In addition, withdrawal-like responses in these mice did not increase following treatment with the opioid antagonist, naloxone. However, other MOR-mediated behaviors were unaffected, including oxycodone-induced analgesia. These data reveal that MOR-mediated regulation of glutamate transmission is a critical component of opioid reward.
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Project description:Opioid neuropeptides and their receptors are evolutionarily conserved neuromodulatory systems that profoundly influence behavior. In dorsal striatum, which expresses the endogenous opioid enkephalin, patches (or striosomes) are limbic-associated subcompartments enriched in mu opioid receptors. The functional implications of opioid signaling in dorsal striatum and the circuit elements in patches regulated by enkephalin are unclear. Here, we examined how patch output is modulated by enkephalin and identified the underlying circuit mechanisms. We found that patches are relatively devoid of parvalbumin-expressing interneurons and exist as self-contained inhibitory microcircuits. Enkephalin suppresses inhibition onto striatal projection neurons selectively in patches, thereby disinhibiting their firing in response to cortical input. The majority of this neuromodulation is mediated by delta, not mu-opioid, receptors, acting specifically on intra-striatal collateral axons of striatopallidal neurons. These results suggest that enkephalin gates limbic information flow in dorsal striatum, acting via a patch-specific function for delta opioid receptors.
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Project description:Religious rituals are universal human practices that play a seminal role in community bonding. In two experiments, we tested the role of mu-opioids as the active factor fostering social bonding. We used a mu-opioid blocker (naltrexone) in two double-blind studies of rituals from different religious traditions. We found the same effect across both studies, with naltrexone leading to significantly lower social bonding compared with placebo. These studies suggest that mu-opioids play a significant role in experiences of social bonding within ritual contexts.
| S-EPMC7655482 | biostudies-literature
Project description:BackgroundMost clinical opioids act through μ-opioid receptors. They effectively relieve pain but are limited by side effects, such as constipation, respiratory depression, dependence, and addiction. Many efforts have been made toward developing potent analgesics that lack side effects. Three-iodobenzoyl-6β-naltrexamide (IBNtxA) is a novel class of opioid active against thermal, inflammatory, and neuropathic pain, without respiratory depression, physical dependence, and reward behavior. The μ-opioid receptor (OPRM1) gene undergoes extensive alternative precursor messenger ribonucleic acid splicing, generating multiple splice variants that are conserved from rodents to humans. One type of variant is the exon 11 (E11)-associated truncated variant containing 6 transmembrane domains (6TM variant). There are 5 6TM variants in the mouse OPRM1 gene, including mMOR-1G, mMOR-1M, mMOR-1N, mMOR-1K, and mMOR-1L. Gene-targeting mouse models selectively removing 6TM variants in E11 knockout (KO) mice eliminated IBNtxA analgesia without affecting morphine analgesia. Conversely, morphine analgesia is lost in an exon 1 (E1) KO mouse that lacks all 7 transmembrane (7TM) variants but retains 6TM variant expression, while IBNtxA analgesia remains intact. Elimination of both E1 and E11 in an E1/E11 double KO mice abolishes both morphine and IBNtxA analgesia. Reconstituting expression of the 6TM variant mMOR-1G in E1/E11 KO mice through lentiviral expression rescued IBNtxA but not morphine analgesia. The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of lentiviral expression of the other 6TM variants in E1/E11 KO mice on IBNtxA analgesia.MethodsLentiviruses expressing 6TM variants were packaged in HEK293T cells, concentrated by ultracentrifugation, and intrathecally administered 3 times. Opioid analgesia was determined using a radiant-heat tail-flick assay. Expression of lentiviral 6TM variant messenger ribonucleic acids was examined by polymerase chain reaction (PCR) or quantitative PCR.ResultsAll the 6TM variants restored IBNtxA analgesia in the E1/E11 KO mouse, while morphine remained inactive. Expression of lentiviral 6TM variants was confirmed by PCR or quantitative PCR. IBNtxA median effective dose values determined from cumulative dose-response studies in the rescued mice were indistinguishable from wild-type animals. IBNtxA analgesia was maintained for up to 33 weeks in the rescue mice and was readily antagonized by the opioid antagonist levallorphan.ConclusionsOur study demonstrated the pharmacological relevance of mouse 6TM variants in IBNtxA analgesia and established that a common functional core of the receptors corresponding to the transmembrane domains encoded by exons 2 and 3 is sufficient for activity. Thus, 6TM variants offer potential therapeutic targets for a distinct class of analgesics that are effective against broad-spectrum pain models without many side effects associated with traditional opioids.
| S-EPMC5820199 | biostudies-literature
Project description:Neuropeptide FF (NPFF) interacts with specific receptors to modulate opioid functions in the central nervous system. On dissociated neurons and neuroblastoma cells (SH-SY5Y) transfected with NPFF receptors, NPFF acts as a functional antagonist of μ-opioid (MOP) receptors by attenuating the opioid-induced inhibition of calcium conductance. In the SH-SY5Y model, MOP and NPFF(2) receptors have been shown to heteromerize. To understand the molecular mechanism involved in the anti-opioid activity of NPFF, we have investigated the phosphorylation status of the MOP receptor using phospho-specific antibody and mass spectrometry. Similarly to direct opioid receptor stimulation, activation of the NPFF(2) receptor by [D-Tyr-1-(NMe)Phe-3]NPFF (1DMe), an analog of NPFF, induced the phosphorylation of Ser-377 of the human MOP receptor. This heterologous phosphorylation was unaffected by inhibition of second messenger-dependent kinases and, contrarily to homologous phosphorylation, was prevented by inactivation of G(i/o) proteins by pertussis toxin. Using siRNA knockdown we could demonstrate that 1DMe-induced Ser-377 cross-phosphorylation and MOP receptor loss of function were mediated by the G protein receptor kinase GRK2. In addition, mass spectrometric analysis revealed that the phosphorylation pattern of MOP receptors was qualitatively similar after treatment with the MOP agonist Tyr-D-Ala-Gly (NMe)-Phe-Gly-ol (DAMGO) or after treatment with the NPFF agonist 1DMe, but the level of multiple phosphorylation was more intense after DAMGO. Finally, NPFF(2) receptor activation was sufficient to recruit β-arrestin2 to the MOP receptor but not to induce its internalization. These data show that NPFF-induced heterologous desensitization of MOP receptor signaling is mediated by GRK2 and could involve transphosphorylation within the heteromeric receptor complex.
| S-EPMC3339982 | biostudies-literature
Project description:Background and purposeThe μ-opioid receptor has been characterized as the main mediator of opioid signalling in neuronal cells. Opioid-induced pain suppression was originally proposed to be mediated by μ-opioid receptor-induced inhibitory effects on cAMP, which is known to mediate inflammatory hypernociception. Recent investigations revealed PI3Kγ and Akt (PKB) as additional elements of μ-opioid receptor signalling. Hence, we investigated the interaction between pronociceptive cAMP and antinociceptive PI3K/Akt signalling pathways.Experimental approachThe human neuroblastoma cell line SK-N-LO and primary dorsal root ganglia (DRG) cells from mice were used to elucidate mediators of μ-opioid receptor signalling. In both cellular systems cAMP was manipulated by stimulation of adenylate cyclase and consequent effects on PI3K/Akt signalling were analysed.Key resultsMorphine stimulated Akt phosphorylation on Ser(473) and Thr(308) in a dose- and time-dependent manner indicating a functional μ-opioid receptor/Akt signalling pathway in μ-SK-N-LO cells. This effect of morphine was suppressed by the μ-opioid receptor inhibitor, naloxone, Pertussis toxin, an inhibitor of Gi heterotrimeric G-proteins, and the pan PI3K inhibitor wortmannin. cAMP-elevating agents also suppressed μ-opioid receptor-dependent stimulation of PI3Kγ lipid kinase and Akt activities in SK-N-LO cells and DRG.Conclusions and implicationsThe data unveil a hitherto unknown interaction of pronociceptive cAMP and antinociceptive PI3K/Akt signalling pathways in neuronal cells. PI3Kγ was identified as a mediator of the inhibitory action of cAMP on Akt in SK-N-LO cells and DRG. The data indicate that PI3Kγ has a critical role in cAMP-mediated inflammatory hypernociception and analgesic signalling via μ-opioid receptors and PI3K/Akt in neuronal cells.
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Project description:Few opioid ligands binding to the three classic opioid receptor subtypes, mu, kappa and delta, have high affinity at the fourth opioid receptor, the nociceptin/orphanin FQ receptor (NOP). We recently reported the discovery of AT-076 (1), (R)-7-hydroxy-N-((S)-1-(4-(3-hydroxyphenyl)piperidin-1-yl)-3-methylbutan-2-yl)-1,2,3,4-tetrahydroisoquinoline-3-carboxamide, a pan antagonist with nanomolar affinity for all four subtypes. Since AT-076 binds with high affinity at all four subtypes, we conducted a structure-activity relationship (SAR) study to probe ligand recognition features important for pan opioid receptor activity, using chemical modifications of key pharmacophoric groups. SAR analysis of the resulting analogs suggests that for the NOP receptor, the entire AT-076 scaffold is crucial for high binding affinity, but the binding mode is likely different from that of NOP antagonists C-24 and SB-612111 bound in the NOP crystal structure. On the other hand, modifications of the 3-hydroxyphenyl pharmacophore, but not the 7-hydroxy Tic pharmacophore, are better tolerated at kappa and mu receptors and yield very high affinity multifunctional (e.g. 12) or highly selective (e.g. 16) kappa ligands. With the availability of the opioid receptor crystal structures, our SAR analysis of the common chemotype of AT-076 suggests rational approaches to modulate binding selectivity, enabling the design of multifunctional or selective opioid ligands from such scaffolds.
| S-EPMC5643385 | biostudies-literature
Project description:The locus coeruleus (LC)-norepinephrine system is a target of both cannabinoid and opioid actions. The present study investigated the anatomical distribution of cannabinoid-1 receptor (CB1r) in the LC and its association with mu-opioid receptor (MOR). Immunoreactivity for CB1r was localized to pre- and postsynaptic cellular profiles in the LC, 82% of which were dual-labeled for tyrosine hydroxylase (TH). Of the CB1r-immunoreactive structures, 66% were somatodendritic profiles, 22% were axon terminals, and the remaining 12% were associated with glial and small unmyelinated axon-like structures. CB1r immunoreactivity (-ir) in somatodendritic profiles was more often localized to the cytoplasm, whereas CB1r-ir located in axon terminals was more commonly localized on the plasma membrane. Somatodendritic profiles with CB1r-ir typically received input from axon terminals forming asymmetric-type synapses. In contrast, presynaptic profiles with CB1r-ir typically formed symmetric synaptic specializations. Anatomical studies confirmed the co-existence of MOR and CB1r-ir in common somatodendritic compartments of catecholaminergic neurons in the LC, and also revealed CB1r-positive axon terminals forming synaptic contact with MOR-containing dendrites. Our results provide evidence for a heterogeneous distribution of CB1r in the LC and demonstrate that CB1r and MOR co-exist in cellular profiles in this region. These data suggest important potential interactions between cannabinoid and opioid systems in LC neuronal profiles that may impact noradrenergic tone.
| S-EPMC2835571 | biostudies-literature
Project description:In the intact brain, hippocampal area CA1 alternates between low-frequency gamma oscillations (γ), phase-locked to low-frequency γ in CA3, and high-frequency γ, phase-locked to γ in the medial entorhinal cortex. In hippocampal slices, γ in CA1 is phase-locked to CA3 low-frequency γ. However, when Schaffer collaterals are cut, CA1 can generate its own high-frequency γ. Here we test whether (un)coupling of CA1 γ from CA3 γ can be caused by μ-opioid receptor (MOR) modulation. In CA1 minislices isolated from rat ventral hippocampus slices, MOR activation by DAMGO reduced the dominant frequency of intrinsic fast γ, induced by carbachol. In intact slices, DAMGO strongly reduced the dominant frequency of CA3 slow γ, but did not affect γ power consistently. DAMGO suppressed the phase coupling of CA1 γ to CA3 slow γ and increased the power of CA1 intrinsic fast γ, but not in the presence of the MOR antagonist CTAP. The benzodiazepine zolpidem and local application of DAMGO to CA3 both mimicked the reduction in dominant frequency of CA3 slow γ, but did not reduce the phase coupling. Local application of DAMGO to CA1 reduced phase coupling. These results suggest that MOR-expressing CA1 interneurons, feed-forwardly activated by Schaffer collaterals, are responsible for the phase coupling between CA3 γ and CA1 γ. Modulating their activity may switch the CA1 network between low-frequency γ and high-frequency γ, controlling the information flow between CA1 and CA3 or medial entorhinal cortex respectively.
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