Photoperiod-Dependent and -Independent Regulation of Melatonin Receptors in the Forebrain of Songbirds : Seasonal regulation of melatonin receptors in the song control system

A G protein-coupled receptor for the pineal hormone melatonin was recently cloned from mammals and designated the Mel1a melatonin receptor. We now report the cloning of a second G protein-coupled melatonin receptor from humans and designate it the Mel1b melatonin receptor. The Mel1b receptor cDNA encodes a protein of 362 amino acids that is 60% identical at the amino acid level to the human Mel1a receptor. Transient expression of the Mel1b receptor in COS-1 cells results in high-affinity 2-[125I]iodomelatonin binding (Kd = 160 +/- 30 pM). In addition, the rank order of inhibition of specific 2-[125I]iodomelatonin binding by eight ligands is similar to that exhibited by the Mel1a melatonin receptor. Functional studies of NIH 3T3 cells stably expressing the Mel1b melatonin receptor indicate that it is coupled to inhibition of adenylyl cyclase. Comparative reverse transcription PCR shows that the Mel1b melatonin receptor is expressed in retina and, to a lesser extent, brain. PCR analysis of human-rodent somatic cell hybrids maps the Mel1b receptor gene (MTNR1B) to human chromosome 11q21-22. The Mel1b melatonin receptor may mediate the reported actions of melatonin in retina and participate in some of the neurobiological effects of melatonin in mammals.

A family of high-affinity, G protein-coupled receptors for the pineal hormone melatonin has been cloned from vertebrates. These recombinant receptors exhibits similar affinity and pharmacological characteristics to each other and to endogenous receptors, as defined with the melatonin agonist 2-[125I]iodomelatonin (125I-Mel). Two mammalian melatonin receptor subtypes have been identified by molecular cloning studies. The mammalian Mel1a melatonin receptor is expressed in most sites containing 125I-Mel binding. This includes the hypothalamic suprachiasmatic nucleus and hypophyseal pars tuberalis, presumed sites of the circadian and some of the reproductive actions of melatonin, respectively. The mammalian Mel1b melatonin receptor is expressed in retina and brain and may mediate the reported effects of melatonin on retinal physiology in some mammals. A third receptor subtype, the Mel1c melatonin receptor, has been cloned from zebra fish, Xenopus, and chickens but not from mammals. Molecular cloning of a melatonin receptor family now makes possible gene targeting to precisely determine the physiological role(s) of each receptor subtype.