Formation and dissociation of M1 muscarinic receptor dimers seen by total internal reflection fluorescence imaging of single molecules
- PMID:20133736
- PMCID: PMC2823895
- DOI: 10.1073/pnas.0907915107
Formation and dissociation of M1 muscarinic receptor dimers seen by total internal reflection fluorescence imaging of single molecules
Abstract
G-protein-coupled receptors (GPCRs) are the largest family of transmembrane signaling proteins in the human genome. Events in the GPCR signaling cascade have been well characterized, but the receptor composition and its membrane distribution are still generally unknown. Although there is evidence that some members of the GPCR superfamily exist as constitutive dimers or higher oligomers, interpretation of the results has been disputed, and recent studies indicate that monomeric GPCRs may also be functional. Because there is controversy within the field, to address the issue we have used total internal reflection fluorescence microscopy (TIRFM) in living cells to visualize thousands of individual molecules of a model GPCR, the M(1) muscarinic acetylcholine receptor. By tracking the position of individual receptors over time, their mobility, clustering, and dimerization kinetics could be directly determined with a resolution of approximately 30 ms and approximately 20 nm. In isolated CHO cells, receptors are randomly distributed over the plasma membrane. At any given time, approximately 30% of the receptor molecules exist as dimers, and we found no evidence for higher oligomers. Two-color TIRFM established the dynamic nature of dimer formation with M(1) receptors undergoing interconversion between monomers and dimers on the timescale of seconds.
Conflict of interest statement
The authors declare no conflict of interest.
Figures




Similar articles
- Dynamic Regulation of Quaternary Organization of the M1 Muscarinic Receptor by Subtype-selective Antagonist Drugs.Pediani JD, Ward RJ, Godin AG, Marsango S, Milligan G.Pediani JD, et al.J Biol Chem. 2016 Jun 17;291(25):13132-46. doi: 10.1074/jbc.M115.712562. Epub 2016 Apr 14.J Biol Chem. 2016.PMID:27080256Free PMC article.
- Development of a homogeneous high-throughput live-cell G-protein-coupled receptor binding assay.Lee PH, Miller SC, van Staden C, Cromwell EF.Lee PH, et al.J Biomol Screen. 2008 Sep;13(8):748-54. doi: 10.1177/1087057108317835. Epub 2008 May 6.J Biomol Screen. 2008.PMID:18460694
- Pirenzepine promotes the dimerization of muscarinic M1 receptors through a three-step binding process.Ilien B, Glasser N, Clamme JP, Didier P, Piemont E, Chinnappan R, Daval SB, Galzi JL, Mely Y.Ilien B, et al.J Biol Chem. 2009 Jul 17;284(29):19533-43. doi: 10.1074/jbc.M109.017145. Epub 2009 May 18.J Biol Chem. 2009.PMID:19451648Free PMC article.
- Revealing G-protein-coupled receptor oligomerization at the single-molecule level through a nanoscopic lens: methods, dynamics and biological function.Scarselli M, Annibale P, McCormick PJ, Kolachalam S, Aringhieri S, Radenovic A, Corsini GU, Maggio R.Scarselli M, et al.FEBS J. 2016 Apr;283(7):1197-217. doi: 10.1111/febs.13577. Epub 2015 Nov 28.FEBS J. 2016.PMID:26509747Review.
- Single-molecule imaging revealed dynamic GPCR dimerization.Kasai RS, Kusumi A.Kasai RS, et al.Curr Opin Cell Biol. 2014 Apr;27:78-86. doi: 10.1016/j.ceb.2013.11.008. Epub 2013 Dec 17.Curr Opin Cell Biol. 2014.PMID:24480089Review.
Cited by
- Total internal reflection fluorescence quantification of receptor pharmacology.Fang Y.Fang Y.Biosensors (Basel). 2015 Apr 27;5(2):223-40. doi: 10.3390/bios5020223.Biosensors (Basel). 2015.PMID:25922915Free PMC article.Review.
- Glucagon-like peptide-1 receptor dimerization differentially regulates agonist signaling but does not affect small molecule allostery.Harikumar KG, Wootten D, Pinon DI, Koole C, Ball AM, Furness SG, Graham B, Dong M, Christopoulos A, Miller LJ, Sexton PM.Harikumar KG, et al.Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 2012 Nov 6;109(45):18607-12. doi: 10.1073/pnas.1205227109. Epub 2012 Oct 22.Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 2012.PMID:23091034Free PMC article.
- Receptor oligomerization: from early evidence to current understanding in class B GPCRs.Ng SY, Lee LT, Chow BK.Ng SY, et al.Front Endocrinol (Lausanne). 2013 Jan 4;3:175. doi: 10.3389/fendo.2012.00175. eCollection 2012.Front Endocrinol (Lausanne). 2013.PMID:23316183Free PMC article.
- Dynamic Regulation of Quaternary Organization of the M1 Muscarinic Receptor by Subtype-selective Antagonist Drugs.Pediani JD, Ward RJ, Godin AG, Marsango S, Milligan G.Pediani JD, et al.J Biol Chem. 2016 Jun 17;291(25):13132-46. doi: 10.1074/jbc.M115.712562. Epub 2016 Apr 14.J Biol Chem. 2016.PMID:27080256Free PMC article.
- HSV-Mediated Transgene Expression of Chimeric Constructs to Study Behavioral Function of GPCR Heteromers in Mice.Holloway T, Moreno JL, González-Maeso J.Holloway T, et al.J Vis Exp. 2016 Jul 9;(113):53717. doi: 10.3791/53717.J Vis Exp. 2016.PMID:27501227Free PMC article.
References
- Caulfield MP, Birdsall NJM. International Union of Pharmacology. XVII. Classification of muscarinic acetylcholine receptors. Pharmacol Rev. 1998;50:279–290. - PubMed
- Langmead CJ, Watson J, Reavill C. Muscarinic acetylcholine receptors as CNS drug targets. Pharmacol Ther. 2008;117:232–243. - PubMed
- Pin JP, et al. Allosteric functioning of dimeric class C G-protein-coupled receptors. FEBS J. 2005;272:2947–2955. - PubMed
- Banères JL, Parello J. Structure-based analysis of GPCR function: Evidence for a novel pentameric assembly between the dimeric leukotriene B4 receptor BLT1 and the G-protein. J Mol Biol. 2003;329:815–829. - PubMed
Publication types
MeSH terms
Substances
Related information
Grants and funding
LinkOut - more resources
Full Text Sources
Other Literature Sources
Molecular Biology Databases