| First Author | van Wyk M | Year | 2023 |
| Journal | Nat Commun | Volume | 14 |
| Issue | 1 | Pages | 2450 |
| PubMed ID | 37117224 | Mgi Jnum | J:335447 |
| Mgi Id | MGI:7470289 | Doi | 10.1038/s41467-023-38231-z |
| Citation | van Wyk M, et al. (2023) A visual opsin from jellyfish enables precise temporal control of G protein signalling. Nat Commun 14(1):2450 |
| abstractText | Phototransduction is mediated by distinct types of G protein cascades in different animal taxa: bilateral invertebrates typically utilise the Galphaq pathway whereas vertebrates typically utilise the Galphat(i/o) pathway. By contrast, photoreceptors in jellyfish (Cnidaria) utilise the Galphas intracellular pathway, similar to olfactory transduction in mammals(1). How this habitually slow pathway has adapted to support dynamic vision in jellyfish remains unknown. Here we study a light-sensing protein (rhodopsin) from the box jellyfish Carybdea rastonii and uncover a mechanism that dramatically speeds up phototransduction: an uninterrupted G protein-coupled receptor - G protein complex. Unlike known G protein-coupled receptors (GPCRs), this rhodopsin constitutively binds a single downstream Galphas partner to enable G-protein activation and inactivation within tens of milliseconds. We use this GPCR in a viral gene therapy to restore light responses in blind mice. |
