Jove
Visualize
Contact Us
JoVE
x logofacebook logolinkedin logoyoutube logo
ABOUT JoVE
OverviewLeadershipBlogJoVE Help Center
AUTHORS
Publishing ProcessEditorial BoardScope & PoliciesPeer ReviewFAQSubmit
LIBRARIANS
TestimonialsSubscriptionsAccessResourcesLibrary Advisory BoardFAQ
RESEARCH
JoVE JournalMethods CollectionsJoVE Encyclopedia of ExperimentsArchive
EDUCATION
JoVE CoreJoVE BusinessJoVE Science EducationJoVE Lab ManualFaculty Resource CenterFaculty Site
Terms & Conditions of Use
Privacy Policy
Policies

Related Experiment Videos

Discovering orphan receptor function using human in vitro pharmacology.

Janet J Maguire1

  • 1Clinical Pharmacology Unit, University of Cambridge, Level 6 Centre for Clinical Investigation, Box 110 Addenbrooke's Hospital, Cambridge CB2 2QQ, UK. jjm1003@medschl.cam.ac.uk

Current Opinion in Pharmacology
|April 12, 2003
PubMed
Summary

New transmitter systems involving orphan receptors like urotensin-II and ghrelin are identified in human cardiac and vascular tissues. These discoveries offer potential new drug targets for cardiovascular disease treatment.

Related Concept Videos

You might also read

Related Articles

Articles linked to this work by shared authors, journal, and citation graph.

Sort by
Same author

Next-generation therapeutics and renaissance of legacy drugs targeting the endothelin system.

Canadian journal of physiology and pharmacology·2026
Same author

Placental apelin expression is low in early-onset fetal growth restriction but there is no association between maternal circulating apelin and pregnancy outcome.

Placenta·2026
Same author

International Union of Basic and Clinical Pharmacology. CXXI. Apelin receptor pharmacology in the human cardiovascular system and emerging clinical applications.

Pharmacological reviews·2026
Same author

The Concise Guide to PHARMACOLOGY 2025/26: G protein-coupled receptors.

British journal of pharmacology·2025
Same author

Localization of the therapeutic targets for endothelin receptor antagonists and sodium-glucose co-transporter 2 inhibitors in the chronic liver disease, primary sclerosing cholangitis.

Frontiers in pharmacology·2025
Same author

Structural and functional determination of peptide versus small molecule ligand binding at the apelin receptor.

Nature communications·2024

Area of Science:

  • Cardiovascular Pharmacology
  • Endocrinology
  • Molecular Biology

Background:

  • Identification of novel mRNA encoding orphan receptors and their ligands in human tissues.
  • Suggests the existence of previously unknown endogenous transmitter systems.
  • Potential roles in regulating human cardiac and vascular function.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To identify and characterize novel orphan receptor systems in human cardiovascular tissues.
  • To explore the potential of these systems as therapeutic targets for cardiovascular diseases.

Main Methods:

  • In vitro pharmacological studies.
  • Analysis of surgical samples from human arteries, veins, and heart muscle (both healthy and pathological).

Main Results:

Related Experiment Videos

  • Successful identification and characterization of orphan receptor systems, including urotensin-II, ghrelin, apelin, and relaxin.
  • Demonstrated the presence of their corresponding mRNA and putative ligands in human cardiovascular tissues.

Conclusions:

  • Orphan receptors and their ligands represent novel endogenous transmitter systems.
  • These systems are implicated in human cardiac and vascular regulation.
  • They offer promising new targets for the development of drugs to treat cardiovascular disease.