How receptor conformation depends on lipid nanodisc size: Adenosine A2A receptor and implications for class-A GPCR proteins

receptor is skewed towards active-like structures compared to the planar membrane environment. However, the tendency of nanodiscs to modulate the conformation of the receptor turns out to be size-dependent. A reassuring observation is that when the diameter of the nanodiscs reaches ∼19 nm, the receptor conformations settle into a distribution whose key features correspond to those of a non-strained planar bilayer. The results support the view that the membrane environment affects the conformational distribution of GPCRs within them, and when it comes to the use of lipid nanodiscs, potential unwanted effects can be minimized by favoring the largest nanodiscs.