GPCR SUBFAMILY SEQUENCE MOTIFS, AND METHODS FOR GPCR CHARACTERIZATION

摘要

The invention relates to the field of bioinformatics. More particularly, theinvention relates to methods of identifying sequence motifs characteristic ofG-protein-coupled receptor (GPCR) subfamilies and using these motifs, forexample, toclassify "orphan GPCRs." The invention provides methods of classifying "orphanGPCRs" that focus on amino acid residue similarities for ligand-bindingpositions. Themethods use optimized sequence alignments and avoid mechanical calculation ofscores and cutoffs. In particular, a sequence motif characteristic of a GPCRsubfamily that binds a certain ligand type is determined, and "orphan GPCRs"havingthe sequence motif are assigned to the subfamily.