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Updated: May 24, 2026

Quantifying Agonist Activity at G Protein-coupled Receptors
Published on: December 26, 2011
Kinetic model of partial agonism reveals cellular basis of ligand efficacy
Michael Ritt1, Nishaben Patel1, Edgardo Sánchez Rivas2
1Department of Genetics, Cell Biology and Development, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA.
Abstract:
Titrating G protein-coupled receptor (GPCR) signaling to achieve desired physiological outcomes without overdose can be accomplished through partial agonism rather than drug dosage. In this study, we use FRET-based biosensors in combination with ordinary differential equation modelling to identify two key kinetic features that determine agonist efficacy: the concentration-dependent association rate of the G protein to the agonist-bound receptor, and the catalytic rate of G protein activation by the receptor. While both rate constants scale proportionally with reported molecular efficacy metrics, we find that the concentration-dependent association rate is the governing parameter across multiple distinct GPCR-ligand pairings. Our model explains discrepancies in signaling outcomes observed between physiological observations and cellular model systems that rely on receptor overexpression.
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