Peptide hormones articles within Nature Communications

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  • Article
    | Open Access

    Amino acids modulate insulin secretion via amino acid transporters expressed on β cells. Here, the authors show a VGF-derived peptide NERP-4 acts as a positive allosteric modulator on the amino acid transporter SNAT2/SLC38A2, thereby contributing to β-cell maintenance and function.

    • Weidong Zhang
    • , Ayako Miura
    •  & Masamitsu Nakazato

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Here, Waltenspühl et al. report the cryo-EM structure of active human oxytocin receptor in complex with oxytocin and with a heterotrimeric G protein, providing insights into this hormone system critically involved in the regulation of social behaviour and reproduction.

    • Yann Waltenspühl
    • , Janosch Ehrenmann
    •  & Andreas Plückthun

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Ghrelin is a gastric peptide hormone and its acylation is required for binding to and activation of the ghrelin receptor in the brain, which initiates appetite. Here, the authors present cryo-EM structures of the Gq-coupled ghrelin receptor bound to ghrelin and the synthetic agonist GHRP-6 and they describe how the acylated peptide hormone is recognised by the receptor, which is of interest for drug design.

    • Yue Wang
    • , Shimeng Guo
    •  & Yi Jiang

  • Article
    | Open Access

    The human neuropeptide Y receptor Y2 (Y2R) is a drug target for the treatment of obesity and anxiety. Crystal structure of Y2R bound to a selective antagonist and accompanying mutagenesis provide insights into ligand recognition and subtype specificity of NPY receptors.

    • Tingting Tang
    • , Christin Hartig
    •  & Beili Wu

  • Article
    | Open Access

    O-glycosylation is an abundant post-translational modification but its relevance for bioactive peptides is unclear. Here, the authors detect O-glycans on almost one third of the classified peptide hormones and show that O-glycosylation can modulate peptide half-lives and receptor activation properties.

    • Thomas D. Madsen
    • , Lasse H. Hansen
    •  & Katrine T. Schjoldager

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Ghrelin is a gastric peptide hormone with important physiological functions, including growth hormone release and appetite-stimulating activity. Here, authors solved the crystal structure of the ghrelin receptor bound to antagonist and suggested a possible mechanism of activation by acyl-modified ghrelin.

    • Yuki Shiimura
    • , Shoichiro Horita
    •  & Masayasu Kojima

  • Article
    | Open Access

    The structures of amyloid fibres are currently primarily studied through solid state NMR and cryo-EM. Here the authors present a free-standing graphene support device that allows diffraction imaging of non-crystalline amyloid fibrils with single X-ray pulses from an X-ray free-electron laser.

    • Carolin Seuring
    • , Kartik Ayyer
    •  & Henry N. Chapman

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Hypothalamic neurons expressing melanin-concentrating-hormone (MCH) maintain body weight by orchestrating behaviour and metabolism, but little is known about their intrinsic regulation. Here, Gonzalez and colleagues reveal their behaviour-related dynamics during wakefulness, and map their brain-wide neural inputs.

    • J. Antonio González
    • , Panagiota Iordanidou
    •  & Denis Burdakov

  • Article
    | Open Access

    The mechanism by which relaxin activates the relaxin family peptide receptor-1 is poorly understood. Here, Sethi et al.identify a relaxin binding site in an extracellular linker between the LDLa and LRR domains and propose that relaxin binding stabilizes a helical conformation that leads to receptor activation.

    • Ashish Sethi
    • , Shoni Bruell
    •  & Paul R. Gooley

  • Article
    | Open Access

    mTORC1 is crucial for chondrocyte proliferation and bone growth, but the downstream signalling is not clear. Here, the authors use rapamycin and chondrocyte-specific Tsc1 knockout mice to show that S6K1 can cause nuclear accumulation of Gli2, thus driving PTHrP expression and preventing terminal differentiation of prehypertrophic chondrocytes.

    • Bo Yan
    • , Zhongmin Zhang
    •  & Xiaochun Bai

  • Article
    | Open Access

    This meta-analysis of genome-wide association studies identifies four genetic loci associated with circulating leptin levels independent of adiposity. Examination in mouse adipose tissue explants provides functional support for the leptin-associated loci.

    • Tuomas O. Kilpeläinen
    • , Jayne F. Martin Carli
    •  & Ruth J. F. Loos

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