We have characterized the biochemical function of the melanocortin 1 receptor (MC1R), a critical regulator of melanin synthesis, from 9 phylogenetically diverse primate species with varying coat colors. There is substantial diversity in melanocyte-stimulating hormone (MSH) binding affinity and basal levels of activity in the cloned MC1Rs. MSH binding was lost independently in lemur and New Worl...

Identification of Polymorphism Melanocortin 4 Receptor Gene and its Association with Egg Production Traits in Turkey

Melanocortin-1 (MC1) receptor is an attractive melanoma-specific target for the development of α-MSH peptide based imaging and therapeutic agents. In this work a new lactam bridge α-MSH analogue was synthesized and radiolabeled with 99mTc via HYNIC chelator and tricine as co-ligand. Also, stability in human serum, receptor bound internalization and tissue biodistribution in tumor bearing nude m...

Recently, studies of adaptive color variation have become popular as models for examining the genetics of natural selection. We examined color pattern polymorphism and genetic variation in a population of side-blotched lizards (Uta stansburiana) that is found in habitats with both dark (lava) and light colored (granite) substrates. We conducted a limited experiment for adult phenotypic plastici...

1 Dipartimento di Scienze e Tecnologie Agro-alimentari, Università di Bologna, Bologna, Italy. Correspondence to: [email protected], [email protected] AbStrAct Coat colour in Sus scrofa has been the matter of pioneering genetics studies carried out at the beginning of the last century. Since then, classical genetics studies have assumed that several loci affect this trait in pigs. W...

melanocortin- 4 receptor (mc4r) and agouti- related peptide (agrp) are involved in energy homeostasis in rats. according to mc4r and agrp effects on luteinizing hormone (lh) secretion, they may influence the estrous cycle of rats. therefore, the aim of this study was to investigate the expression of mc4r and agrp mrnas at different stages of estrous cycle in the rat’s hypothalamus. the estrous ...

Although the genetic basis of color variation has been extensively studied in humans and domestic animals, the genetic polymorphisms responsible for different color morphs remain to be elucidated in many wild vertebrate species. For example, hypopigmentation has been observed in numerous marine mammal species but the underlying mutations have not been identified. A particularly compelling candi...

Abstract The leptin-melanocortin pathway is playing a pivotal role for central body weight regulation. melanocortin 4 receptor (MC4R) essential to induce satiety after activation by the endogenous ligands α-/β-melanocyte-stimulating hormone. relevance of biased signaling exemplified an MC4R agonist, which has been approved treatment rare forms monogenic obesity. Here discussed as new option dev...