Orphan 7-TM Receptor Inverse Agonists

Orphan 7-TM receptors (orphan GPCRs) are receptors for which there are no defined ligands. Traditionally, receptors are characterized by specific ligands and stimuli; the search for ligands of orphan receptors is akin to reverse-engineering this process, since the receptors have been identified but they are responding to as-yet unidentified endogenous ligands. There are approximately 150 orphan 7-TM receptors, subdivided into three classes: Class A, Class B and Class C. Orphan G-protein coupled ...