CRYSTAL STRUCTURES OF LIGAND RECEPTOR COMPLEXES

细胞结合的跨膜受体提供了一种手段， 细胞与细胞外环境之间的通讯。 来自细胞外的信号由每个细胞的特异性配体携带 特定的受体类型。 配体与其特异性 受体使信号由受体传递到受体。 细胞内空间，启动一系列细胞内过程 导致特定的生物效应。 我们正在利用这两个 主要家庭的单程跨膜受体，以研究 受体特异性和配体诱导受体活化的基础 通过测定配体之间的配合物的晶体结构， 它们的细胞外受体结构域。

Cell-bound, membrane-spanning receptors provide a means of communication between cells and the extracellular environment. Signals from outside the cell are carried by ligands specific for each particular receptor type. Binding of the ligand to its specific receptor causes a signal to be transmitted by the receptor to the intracellular space, initiating a series of intracellular processes resulting in specific biological effects. We are using the two principal families of single-pass transmembrane receptors to study the basis of receptor specificity and ligand-induced receptor activation by determining the crystal structures of complexes between ligands and their extracellular receptor domains.