Innovating Works

SignalHet

Financiado
Molecular mechanisms of GPCR heteromers signaling
G Protein Coupled Receptors (GPCRs) are key mediators of how cells sense and react to their outside environment. Traditionally, these receptors have been thought to function as individual units at the cell surface. Over the past d... G Protein Coupled Receptors (GPCRs) are key mediators of how cells sense and react to their outside environment. Traditionally, these receptors have been thought to function as individual units at the cell surface. Over the past decade, new evidence has shown they can assemble in larger complexes to form new signaling entities and vastly expand a cell’s capacity to respond to its environment. Thanks to their strong tissue-specificity, these complexes -termed heteromer- also form important targets for the development of new drugs with less side effects. Still, our understanding of the molecular mechanisms by which assembly of GPCRs in complexes transform their signaling properties remain extremely sparse. My proposal investigates how heteromers interact and integrate changes in their environments to generate unique cellular responses. I focus my research on the mGlu2-5HT2A heteromer, as its existence has been demonstrated in humans and is involved in schizophrenia, a debilitating condition that urgently requires new treatments. This proposal is organised in three objectives: 1/ A too often over-looked component of a GPCR environment is the lipidic membrane it is inserted in. Using a multi-scale biophysics approach, I will characterise the essential role lipids play in the assembly and function of heteromers, but also how receptors themselves change the membrane they are inserted in to transmit information. 2/ I will use cryo-electron microscopy to solve the first structure of a heteromer, bound to its signaling partners, G proteins. I will go even further and develop cutting-edge EM tools to resolve a high-resolution movie of a GPCR heteromer signaling cascade, from receptor assembly to G protein activation. 3/ Finally, using single particle cryoEM and fluorescence, I will investigate how heteromers recruit other partners which in turn modify receptors to form these new signaling units. ver más
31/03/2029
1M€
Duración del proyecto: 62 meses Fecha Inicio: 2024-01-29
Fecha Fin: 2029-03-31

Línea de financiación: concedida

El organismo HORIZON EUROPE notifico la concesión del proyecto el día 2024-01-29
Línea de financiación objetivo El proyecto se financió a través de la siguiente ayuda:
ERC-2023-STG: ERC STARTING GRANTS
Cerrada hace 2 años
Presupuesto El presupuesto total del proyecto asciende a 1M€
Líder del proyecto
CENTRE NATIONAL DE LA RECHERCHE SCIENTIFIQUE... No se ha especificado una descripción o un objeto social para esta compañía.
Perfil tecnológico TRL 4-5