Receptor Binding Techniques

Description

Maintaining the high standards set by the successful first edition, Anthony P. Davenport and a panel of hands-on researchers from the pharmaceutical industry and academia take advantage of the latest developments to provide detailed practical methods for studying receptors in silico, in vitro, and in vivo. These readily reproducible techniques cover mining from curated databases, identifying novel receptors by high throughput screening, molecular methods to identify mRNA encoding receptors, radioligand binding assays and their analysis, quantitative autoradiography, and imaging receptors by positron emission tomography (PET). Highlights include phenotypic characterization of receptors in knock-out mice, imaging receptors using green fluorescent protein and fluorescent resonance energy transfer, and quantitative analysis of receptor mRNA by TaqMan polymerase chain reaction (PCR). These ligand binding techniques are perfect for exploring the unprecedented number of new receptor systems now emerging and the so-called "orphan" receptors whose activating ligand has not been identified. The protocols follow the successful Methods in Molecular Biology™ series format, each offering step-by-step laboratory instructions, an introduction outlining the principle behind the technique, lists of the necessary equipment and reagents, and tips on troubleshooting and avoiding known pitfalls. Comprehensive and state of the art, Receptor Binding Techniques, Second Edition offers academic and commercial researchers in the pharmaceutical and biotechnology industries a set of proven techniques for the successful characterization of receptors and the phenotyping of transgenic animals, including knock-outs.