Characterization of a novel thyrotropin-releasing hormone receptor, TRHR3, in chickens

The physiological roles of thyrotropin-releasing hormone (TRH) are proposed to be mediated by TRH receptors (TRHR), which have been divided into 3 subtypes, namely, TRHR1, TRHR2, and TRHR3, in vertebrates. Although 2 TRH receptors (TRHR1 and TRHR3) have been predicted to exist in birds, it remains unclear whether TRHR3 is a functional TRH receptor similar to TRHR1. Here, we reported the functionality and tissue expression of TRHR3 in chickens. The cloned chicken TRHR3 (cTRHR3) encodes a receptor of 387 amino acids, which shares high-amino-acid identities (63-80%) to TRHR3 of parrots, lizards, Xenopus tropicalis, and tilapia and comparatively lower sequence identities to chicken TRHR1 or mouse TRHR2. Using cell-based luciferase reporter assays and Western blot, we demonstrated that similar to chicken TRHR1 (cTRHR1), cTRHR3 expressed in HEK 293 cells can be potently activated by TRH and that its activation stimulates multiple signaling pathways, indicating both TRH receptors are functional. Quantitative real-time PCR revealed that cTRHR1 and cTRHR3 are widely, but differentially, expressed in chicken tissues, and their expression is likely controlled by promoters located upstream of exon 1, which display strong promoter activities in cultured DF-1 cells. cTRHR1 is highly expressed in the anterior pituitary and testes, while cTRHR3 is highly expressed in the muscle, testes, fat, pituitary, spinal cord, and many brain regions (including hypothalamus). These findings indicate that TRH actions are likely mediated by 2 TRH receptors in chickens. In conclusion, our data provide the first piece of evidence that both cTRHR3 and cTRHR1 are functional TRH receptors, which helps to elucidate the physiological roles of TRH in birds.