Functional role of car☐yl‐terminal tail of prostaglandin EP3 receptor in Gi coupling

We recently demonstrated that the mouse EP3beta receptor and its carboxyl-terminal tail-truncated receptor showed agonist-dependent and full constitutive Gi activities, respectively (Hasegawa, H., Negishi, M. and Ichikawa, A. (1996) J. Biol. Chem. 271, 1857-1860). To assess the role of the carboxyl-terminal tail in the EP3beta receptor Gi coupling, we constructed a series of mutant receptors with progressively truncated carboxyl-termini. The truncated receptors displayed constitutive Gi activities, the degree of constitutive activity basically correlating with the inverse of the length of the carboxyl-terminal tail, but the sequence between Leu340 and Val347 was mainly contributed to the constitutive activity. Thus, the carboxyl-terminal tail plays an important role in the constraint of the EP3 receptor in its inactive conformation.