Olfactory receptor signaling

Abstract

The guanine nucleotide protein (G protein)-coupled receptors (GPCRs) superfamily represents the largest class of membrane protein in the human genome. More than a half of all GPCRs are dedicated to interact with odorants and are termed odorant-receptors (ORs). Linda Buck and Richard Axel, the Nobel Prize laureates in physiology or medicine in 2004, first cloned and characterized the gene family that encode ORs, establishing the foundations to the understanding of the molecular basis for odor recognition. In the last decades, a lot of progress has been done to unravel the functioning of the sense of smell. This chapter gives a general overview of the topic of olfactory receptor signaling and reviews recent advances in this field.

Keywords: Adaptation; GPCR cycling; Odorant responses; Olfactory receptors.