The Role and Mechanism of Zinc-Sensitive Receptor GPR39 in Disease Occurrence and Treatment

WEN Xin1,2, TIE Yanqing2 *, WANG Shusong3 *

(¹Clinical Medical College, North China University of Science and Technology, Tangshan 063210, China; ²Department of Laboratory, Hebei General Hospital, Shijiazhuang 050051, China; ³Hebei Institute of Reproductive Health Science and Technology, NHC Key Laboratory of Family Planning and Healthy, Hebei Key Laboratory of Reproductive Medicine, Hebei Institute of Reproductive Health Science and Technology, Shijiazhuang 050071, China)

Abstract:

Zinc is an essential trace element for regulating human physiological activities and many metabolic processes. Zn2+, as a second messenger, is widely involved in cell proliferation and differentiation, nucleic acid and protein synthesis, and many other important physiological activities. Extracellular Zn2+ binds to a variety of cell surface proteins, the most notable of which is the zinc receptor, GPR39 (G protein-coupled receptor 39), for which Zn2+ is the only known endogenous ligand. GPR39 can activate Ca2+ signaling under the influence of Zn2+, leading to phosphorylation of ERK1/2 and AKT, and ultimately activating ERK/MAPK, AKT/PI3K and other downstream signal transduction pathways. This article will review the structure, function, signal transduction pathway of GPR39 and its role in disease development and treatment.

CSTR: 32200.14.cjcb.2022.03.0015