Nature-derived peptides as molecular tools to study cellular signaling
A group of researchers of the Institute of Pharmacology at the Medical University of Vienna in collaboration with the University of Vienna and different institutions in Australia, has shown that a certain peptide hormone derived from a mite activates selectively a specific secondary messenger molecule on the human vasopressin 2 receptor (V2R). This is all the more astonishing since drugs normally activate several different molecular signaling pathways via this class of receptors—belonging to the group of G protein-coupled receptors. This evokes desirable, but also adverse effects. Such peptides can now be used as chemical tools to gain a better understanding of the mechanisms of signal transmission in cells, hence facilitating the more targeted use of drugs in the future—with fewer side-effects.