Identification and partial sequence of a chicken beta-adrenergic receptor

Abstract

Epinephrine and other related catecholamines activate adrenergic receptors to affect cell chemistry through second messenger cascades. Beta (0) adrenergic receptors couple with GTP-binding proteins (G proteins) to modulate the adenylate cyclase cascade. 0-adrenergic receptors have a seven-helix motif that displays sequence homology across diverse species. However, receptor diversity is apparent, especially at the carboxyl end, between mammals and turkeys, the only recorded sequence from aves. These differences could explain the different growth responses to []-adrenergic agonists observed between mammals and aves. The Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR) was used to amplify and sequence the chicken 0-adrenergic receptor using PCR primers extrapolated from the turkey sequence. The PCR product was cloned to produce a 400 base pair probe for the chicken. The probe was hybridized with a Leghorn chicken library to isolate the chicken P-adrenergic receptor sequence, and positive clones were analyzed by automated sequencing.