Receptor (biochemistry)
hideIn biochemistry, a receptor is a protein molecule, embedded in either the plasma membrane or cytoplasm of a cell, to which a mobile signaling (or "signal") molecule may attach. A molecule which binds to a receptor is called a "ligand," and may be a peptide (such as a neurotransmitter), a hormone, a pharmaceutical drug, or a toxin, and when such binding occurs, the receptor undergoes a conformational change which ordinarily initiates a cellular response. However, some ligands merely block receptors without inducing any response (e.g. antagonists). Ligand-induced changes in receptors result in physiological changes which constitute the biological activity of the ligands.
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News tagged with receptors
Small Fingers More Touch Sensitive
Medicine & Health / Neuroscience
Dec 16, 2009 |
4.7 / 5 (3) |
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When it comes to finger sensitivity, bigger isn't always better.
New biosensors reveal workings of anti-psychotic drugs in the living brain
Medicine & Health / Neuroscience
Dec 13, 2009 |
4 / 5 (3) |
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Scientists have resolved a question about how a popular class of drugs used to treat schizophrenia works using biosensors that reveal previously hidden components of chemical communication in the brain.
Why King Kong failed to impress
Dec 08, 2009 |
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Humans have the same receptors for detecting odors related to sex as do other apes and primates. But each species uses them in different ways, stemming from the way the genes for these receptors have evolved over time, according ...
Scientists find emotion-like behaviors, regulated by dopamine, in fruit flies
Medicine & Health / Neuroscience
Nov 25, 2009 |
5 / 5 (3) |
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Scientists at the California Institute of Technology have uncovered evidence of a primitive emotion-like behavior in the fruit fly, Drosophila melanogaster. Their findings, which may be relevant to the relationship betwee ...
'The pill' for him: Scientists find a hormonal on-and-off switch for male fertility
Nov 30, 2009 |
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A new research report published in the December 2009 print issue of The FASEB Journal could one day give men similar type of control over their fertility that women have had since the 1960s. That's because scientists have f ...
'Comfort food' a stress killer: Australian study
Nov 24, 2009 |
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A high-fat, high-sugar diet could have the same effect on brain chemistry as mood-altering drugs, giving scientific support to the craving for "comfort food", Australian researchers said Tuesday.
Research reveals exactly how coughing is triggered by environmental irritants
Nov 23, 2009 |
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(PhysOrg.com) -- Scientists have revealed how environmental irritants such as air pollution and cigarette smoke cause people to cough, in research published today in the American Journal of Respiratory an ...
Hindering HIV-1-fighting immune cells
Medicine & Health / HIV & AIDS
Dec 14, 2009 |
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Immune proteins called HLA molecules help to activate killer T cell responses against pathogens. But according to a study that will be published online on December 14th in the Journal of Experimental Medicine, one partic ...
