Reconstitution of membrane receptor systems

This review makes an attempt to summarize the present status of the field of receptor reconstitution. First a general discussion on the problem of receptor to effector coupling is discussed with an emphasis on the approaches used to solubilize, purify and reconstitute receptors with their respective biochemical effectors. Two categories of receptors have thus far been studied in great detail: 1. (1) receptors linked to ion channels best represented by the nicotinic acetylcholine receptor and 2. (2) receptors linked to adenylate cyclase. Through a detailed discussion of these two receptor systems the reader should get an idea of where the field of receptor reconstitution is headed. Only in the β-adrenergic-receptor-dependent adenylate cyclase have the receptor and the effector systems been completely separated, purified and reconstituted. Therefore, a detailed discussion on that system occupies a very significant portion of this article. A summary of the state-of-the-art on a number of other receptor systems is also given in the last part of the review.