Abstract
G protein-coupled receptors (GPCRs) constitute the largest family of transmembrane proteins in metazoans that mediate the regulation of various physiological responses to discrete ligands through heterotrimeric G protein subunits. The existence of GPCRs in plant is contentious, but their comparable crucial role in various signaling pathways necessitates the identification of novel remote GPCR-like proteins that essentially interact with the plant G protein α subunit and facilitate the transduction of various stimuli. In this study, we identified three putative GPCR-like proteins (OsGPCRLPs) (LOC_Os06g09930.1, LOC_Os04g36630.1, and LOC_Os01g54784.1) in the rice proteome using a stringent bioinformatics workflow. The identified OsGPCRLPs exhibited a canonical GPCR 'type I' 7TM topology, patterns, and biologically significant sites for membrane anchorage and desensitization. Cluster-based interactome mapping revealed that the identified proteins interact with the G protein α subunit which is a characteristic feature of GPCRs. Computational results showing the interaction of identified GPCR-like proteins with G protein α subunit and its further validation by the membrane yeast-two-hybrid assay strongly suggest the presence of GPCR-like 7TM proteins in the rice proteome. The absence of a regulator of G protein signaling (RGS) box in the C- terminal domain, and the presence of signature motifs of canonical GPCR in the identified OsGPCRLPs strongly suggest that the rice proteome contains GPCR-like proteins that might be involved in signal transduction.