The FlowCellect™ GPCR identification kits are designed for flow cytometry applications, which can be used for the identification and quantification of the surface expression level of GPCRs on any cells. The kit uses a GPCR antibody validated for flow cytometry to detect receptor expression, and also includes both positive and negative control cells with well characterized receptor expression levels for the purpose of quantification.
Chemokine receptors are very attractive targets because they are highly expressed on immune cells and regulate leukocyte activation and trafficking. Many of these targets have been indicated to play a key role in certain diseases states such as HIV infection, Rheumatoid Arthritis, and Diabetes. The expression levels of these receptors often reflect the different states of infectious diseases and inflammation.
Chemokine receptors are seven transmembrane G-Protein coupled receptors (GPCRs). The chemokine receptor family comprises of eighteen GPCR targets, in which ten are CC chemokine receptors, seven are CXC chemokine receptors, and one is a CX3C chemokine receptor. Currently, Millipore has launched 12 GPCR surface identification kits with an initial focus on the chemokine receptor family.
Eosinophils are major effector cells implicated in a number of chronic inflammatory diseases in humans, particularly bronchial asthma and allergic rhinitis. The chemokine receptor 3 (CCR3), a GPCR activated by chemokines eotaxin 1/2, MCP-3, MCP-4, and RANTES, mediates selective recruitment of eosinophils into tissue and thus has recently become an attractive biological target for therapeutic intervention [1]. It is widely expressed on cells involved in allergic inflammation, such as basophils, mast cells, airway epithelial cells, and potentially TH2 T-lymphocytes. Allergen-induced eosinophil infiltration into airways is reduced or eliminated in CCR3 and eotaxin 1/2 knockout mice and in mice treated with antibodies directed against CCR3 [2,3]. CCR3 antagonists are currently being developed for the treatment of asthma and other allergic disorders.
The control cells provided in the kit are based on the commercially available ChemiScreen™ GPCR stable cell lines from Millipore. Both the positive and negative control cell lines have been fully characterized using Pharmacology techniques such as radioligand binding assay to determine the receptor number for each cell type [4]. Using this information, now the researcher can determine the number of receptors per cell on any given cell type.