2020 Online Salon
Melatonin Type 1B Receptor and Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus
Project Details
- Entrant Name: Emilyn Frohn
- Membership Type: Student Submission
- Address: Chicago, Illinois, USA
- Client: Isabel Romero-Calvo, Evelyn Maizels
- Copyright: 2020 Emilyn Frohn
- Medium/software used: VMD, Swiss PDB Viewer, 3ds Max, Adobe Photoshop, Adobe Illustrator
- Final presentation format: Poster, 24″ x 13.5″
- Primary Audience: Researchers, scientists, and medical professionals
Project Description
Designed for an audience of researchers, scientists, and medical professionals, this molecular visualization illuminates the single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) on the Melatonin type 1B receptor, also known as MT2 receptor. MT2 is a G-Protein Coupled Receptor that binds with melatonin. Melatonin is most well-known for its role in regulation of circadian rhythms, but it achieves this effect by playing a part in metabolic pathways. These SNPs are linked to disruptions in glucose homeostasis and therefore may be associated with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) risk. The goal for this piece was to create an illustration depicting the MT2 receptor and corresponding insets showing mutations commonly associated with disruptions in melatonin-induced Gi1 or Gz binding and spontaneous B-arrestin interactions. Understanding the SNPs associated with T2DM risk may be key in assessing a patient’s risk or unlocking drug therapies targeting the MT2 receptor.
