# Illuminating Orphan GPCRs in Lymphatics

> **NIH NIH R03** · UNIV OF NORTH CAROLINA CHAPEL HILL · 2021 · $155,500

## Abstract

ABSTRACT
Since more than 40% of all clinically-available drugs target G-protein coupled receptors (GPCRs),
there is great interest in learning more about this family of proteins in order to discover new
therapeutic targets. When considering the different classes of proteins encoded by the human
genome that are predicted to be pharmacologically-tractable, a remarkable one quarter represent
GPCRs. And yet, of the ~345 non-odorant GPCRs a large proportion remain orphan—with no
known ligand—or have uncharacterized physiological functions. Since we have a dearth of
pharmacological targets for lymphatic vessels, it stands to reason that focused efforts to explore
and characterize the lymphatic “GPCRome” is a worthwhile endeavor. We have identified 3
orphan GPCRs that are IDG-eligible target proteins in the Illuminating the Druggable Genome
(IDG) Project. We propose to develop and use in vitro and animal-based systems to further
characterize the expression and activation of these GPCRs in the lymphatic vasculature. Our
results will further the overall goals of the IDG Consortium and reveal novel physiological
pathways and potential therapeutic targets for the modulation of lymphatics, which remains an
understudied research area with unmet clinical needs.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10216726
- **Project number:** 1R03TR003368-01A1
- **Recipient organization:** UNIV OF NORTH CAROLINA CHAPEL HILL
- **Principal Investigator:** Kathleen M Caron
- **Activity code:** R03 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2021
- **Award amount:** $155,500
- **Award type:** 1
- **Project period:** 2021-05-01 → 2022-04-30

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10216726

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10216726, Illuminating Orphan GPCRs in Lymphatics (1R03TR003368-01A1). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-25 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10216726. Licensed CC0.

---

*[NIH grants dataset](/datasets/nih-grants) · CC0 1.0*