biology

Vasopressin receptor 1A

Vasopressin receptor 1A is a biology topic covered in the lgStudy science library. This page brings together a partial reference excerpt, illustrations, worked examples, real-world applications and a short study plan, so you can understand Vasopressin receptor 1A rather than just read about it. In short: Vasopressin receptor 1A (V1AR), or arginine vasopressin receptor 1A (officially called AVPR1A) is one of the three major receptor types for vasopressin (AVPR1B and AVPR2 being the others), and is present throughout the brain, as well as in the periphery in the liver, kidney, and vasculature. AVPR1A is also known as: V1a vasopressin receptor antidiuretic hormone receptor 1A SCCL vasopressin subtype 1a receptor V1-vas…

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Reference excerpt

Vasopressin receptor 1A (V1AR), or arginine vasopressin receptor 1A (officially called AVPR1A) is one of the three major receptor types for vasopressin (AVPR1B and AVPR2 being the others), and is present throughout the brain, as well as in the periphery in the liver, kidney, and vasculature. AVPR1A is also known as:

V1a vasopressin receptor antidiuretic hormone receptor 1A SCCL vasopressin subtype 1a receptor V1-vascular vasopressin receptor AVPR1A vascular/hepatic-type arginine vasopressin receptor

Structure and function Human AVPR1A cDNA is 1472 bp long and encodes a 418 amino-acid long polypeptide which shares 72%, 36%, 37%, and 45% sequence identity with rat AVPR1A, human AVPR2, rat AVPR2, and human oxytocin receptor (OXTR), respectively. AVPR1A is a G-protein coupled receptor (GPCR) with 7 transmembrane domains that couples to Gaq/11 guanosine triphosphate (GTP) binding proteins, which along with Gbl, activate phospholipase C activity. Clinically, the V1A receptor is related to vasoconstriction compared to the V1B receptor that is more related to adrenocorticotropic hormone (ACTH) release or the V2 receptor that is linked to the antidiuretic function of antidiuretic hormone (ADH).

Ligand binding In the N-terminal juxtamembrane segment of the AVPR1A, the glutamate residue at position 54 (E54) and the arginine residue at position 46 (R46) are critical for binding with arginine vasopressin (AVP) and AVP agonists, with E54 likely to interact with AVP and R46 to contribute to a conformational switch. Competitors of [125I]Tyr-Phaa-specific binding to AVPR1A include:

Linear V1a antagonist phenylacetyl-D-Tyr(Et)-Phe-Gln-Asn-Lys-Pro-Arg-NH2 (Ki = 1.2 ± 0.2 nM) Relcovaptan (SR-49059) (Ki = 1.3 ± 0.2 nM) AVP (Ki = 1.8 ± 0.4 nM) Linear V1a antagonist phenylacetyl-D-Tyr(Et)-Phe-Val-Asn-Lys-Pro-Tyr-NH2 (Ki = 3.0 ± 0.5 nM) V2 antagonist d(CH2)5-[D-Ile2, Ile4, Ala-NH2]AVP (Ki = 68 ± 17 nM) Oxytocin (Ki = 129 ± 22 nM) The AVPR1A is endocytosed by binding to beta-arrestin, which dissociates rapidly from AVPR1A to allow it to return to the plasma membrane; however, upon activation, AVPR1A can heterodimerize with AVPR2 to increase beta-arrestin-mediated endocytosis (and intracellular accumulation) of AVPR1A, since AVPR2 is far less likely to dissociate from beta-arrestin.

Role in behavior The activity of genetic variants of the AVPR1A gene might be related to generosity and altruistic behavior. Nature News has referred to AVPR1A as the "ruthlessness gene".

Prairie vs. montane voles The injection of oxytocin (OXT) vs. oxytocin antagonist (OTA) at birth has sexually dimorphic effects in prairie voles later on in life in various areas of the brain. Males treated with OXT showed increases in AVPR1A in the ventral pallidum, lateral septum, and cingulate cortex, while females showed decreases; males treated with an OTA showed decreases in AVPR1A in the bed nucleus of the stria terminalis, medial preoptic area of the hypothalamus, and lateral septum. Although the AVPR1A coding region is 99% identical between prairie and montane voles, and binding and second messenger activity does not differ, patterns of distribution of AVPR1A differ drastically.

Mice Male knockout mice in AVPR1A have reduced anxiety-like behavior and greatly impaired social recognition abilities, without any defects in spatial and nonsocial olfactory learning and memory tasks, as measured by the elevated plus maze, light/dark box, Morris water maze, forced swim, baseline acoustic startle and prepulse inhibition (PPI), and olfactory habituation tests. Some studies have shown AVPR1A knockout mice to have deficits in their circadian rhythms and olfaction. AVPR1A's role in social recognition is particularly important in the lateral septum, as using viral vectors to replace inactivated AVPR1A expression rescues social recognition and increases anxiety-related behavior. However, conflicting results have been found in another study. Also, unlike vasopressin 1b receptor and oxytocin knockout mice, AVPR1A knockout mice have a normal Bruce effect (appropriate failure of pregnancy in presence of novel male). Although activation of AVPR1A is a major mediator of anxiogenesis in males, it is not in females.

Rats AVPR1A transcripts are diurnally expressed 12 hours out of phase from vasopressin expression in vasopressin and vasoactive intestinal polypeptide neurons of the suprachiasmatic nucleus in both vasopressin-normal Sprague-Dawley rats, as well as vasopressin-deficient Brattleboro rats. Rats with reduced AVPR1A in the bed nucleus of the stria terminalis have increased incidences of the isolation potentiated startle, a measure of isolation-induced anxiety. Subchronic phencyclidine (PCP) treatment (which induces symptoms similar to those of schizophrenia) reduces AVPR1A density in many brain regions, implying there might be a role for AVPR1A in schizophrenia. AVPR1A is present in the lateral septum, neocortical layer IV, hippocampal formation, amygdalostriatal area, bed nucleus of the stria terminalis, suprachiasmatic nucleus, ventral tegmental area, substantia nigra, superior colliculus, dorsal raphe, nucleus of the solitary tract, spinal cord, and inferior olive, while mRNA transcripts for AVPR1A are found in the olfactory bulb, hippocampal formation, lateral septum, suprachiasmatic nucleus, paraventricular nucleus, anterior hypothalamic area, arcuate nucleus, lateral habenula, ventral tegmental area, substantia nigra (pars compacta), superior colliculus, raphe nuclei, locus coeruleus, inferior olive, choroid plexus, endothelial cells, area postrema and nucleus of the solitary tract.

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Illustrations

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with Vasopressin receptor 1A

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what Vasopressin receptor 1A claims or describes in one sentence, then invent the smallest concrete situation in which that sentence is true. In biology, the smallest case is usually a single object, a single equation or a single measurement. Check that every symbol or term in your sentence has a meaning in that case.

Example 2 — changing one variable

Take the situation from Example 1 and change exactly one quantity: double it, halve it, or set it to zero. Predict what should happen to Vasopressin receptor 1A before you calculate. Comparing your prediction with the result is the fastest way to find out whether you understand the idea or only the words.

Example 3 — an exam-style question

Typical questions about Vasopressin receptor 1A ask you to (a) state it precisely, (b) apply it to given data, and (c) explain a limitation. Practise writing all three answers in under five minutes; the third part is what separates a full-mark answer from an average one.

Applications of Vasopressin receptor 1A

In research: Vasopressin receptor 1A appears in biology research whenever the underlying quantities have to be modelled precisely. Papers usually cite it as a starting assumption and then explore where it breaks down.
In technology and industry: Engineering practice reuses Vasopressin receptor 1A in design rules, simulations and safety margins. Knowing the idea lets you read a specification sheet and understand why the numbers look the way they do.
In the classroom: Vasopressin receptor 1A is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics Biology of bipolar disorder, G protein-coupled receptors, Genes on human chromosome 12, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for Vasopressin receptor 1A outside the textbook — in sport, cooking, traffic, electronics or the sky above you. An example you found yourself is remembered far longer than one you were given.

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Frequently asked questions

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Why does Vasopressin receptor 1A matter?

Because it connects several biology ideas at once: it gives you a definition you can apply, a quantity you can calculate, and a way to check whether a result is plausible.

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Read the excerpt, restate it from memory, then work through the examples and applications listed on this page. The five-step study plan above takes about twenty minutes.

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