β-Arrestin and its role in signal transduction

β-Arrestin is a ubiquitous protein in cells, where it is involved in signal transduction and can affect different cellular processes. β-Arrestin cooperates with G protein-coupled receptors (GPCRs). Binding of β-arrestin to a receptor after its activation by a relevant ligand results in attenuation of signal transduction through the cognate G proteins, the process called desensitization, which can be associated with receptor intrenalization. Besides that, β-arrestin acts as adaptor for different molecules, which participate in signal transduction. β-Arrestin also has a role in a regulation of transcription in the cell nucleus. Finally, β-arrestin is explored in research focused on the development of a new type of drugs, so called biased ligands. After binding to a GPCR, these ligands can initiated only one specific activity of the receptor and affect relevant signaling cascades. Powered by TCPDF (www.tcpdf.org