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  • RESEARCH HIGHLIGHT

Cells ‘hear’ messages with help from shape-shifting molecules

A receptor on cells has two forms, each associated with a different type of messaging.
The crystal structure of the beta 2-adrenergic receptor bound to the G protein adenylyl cyclase stimulatory G protein

A G-protein-coupled receptor (green; artist’s illustration) binds a G protein (orange) that has been artificially attached to an enzyme (purple) for stability. Credit: X. Liu et al./Cell

Key cellular receptors can change their shapes, which might allow them to expand the variety of messages they send to cells.

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Nature 569, 310 (2019)

doi: https://doi.org/10.1038/d41586-019-01509-8

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