Heterologous expression of G-protein-coupled receptors: comparison of expression systems from the standpoint of large-scale production and purification

• Published in: Cellular and molecular life sciences : CMLS Vol. 60; no. 8; pp. 1529 - 1546
• Main Authors: Sarramegna, V, Talmont, F, Demange, P, Milon, A
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Switzerland Springer Nature B.V 01-08-2003; Springer Verlag; Birkhäuser-Verlag
• Subjects: Animals; Baculoviridae - genetics; Cell Line; E coli; Escherichia coli - genetics; Gene Expression; GTP-Binding Proteins - metabolism; Humans; Life Sciences; Mammals; Multi-author Review; Pichia - genetics; Proteins; Receptors, Cell Surface - biosynthesis; Receptors, Cell Surface - genetics; Receptors, Cell Surface - isolation & purification; Recombinant Proteins - biosynthesis; Recombinant Proteins - genetics; Recombinant Proteins - isolation & purification; Saccharomyces cerevisiae - genetics; Schizosaccharomyces - genetics; Signal transduction; Spodoptera - genetics; Yeasts
• ISSN: 1420-682X; 1420-9071
• DOI: 10.1007/s00018-003-3168-7

G-protein-coupled receptors (GPCRs) are of prime importance for cell signal transduction mechanisms and are the target of many current and potential drugs. However, structural data on these membrane proteins is still scarce because of their low natural abundance and the low efficiency of most of the expression systems currently available. This review presents the most important expression systems currently employed for heterologous expression of GPCRs; Escherichia coli, yeast, insect cells and mammalian cells. After briefly recalling the specificity, advantages and limitations of each system, particular emphasis is put on the quantitative comparison of these expression systems in terms of overall expression yield, and on the influence of various factors (primary sequence, origin, cell type, N- and C-terminal tags) on the results.