Activating mineralocorticoid receptor mutation in hypertension exacerbated by pregnancy

Science. 2000 Jul 7;289(5476):119-23. doi: 10.1126/science.289.5476.119.

Abstract

Hypertension and pregnancy-related hypertension are major public health problems of largely unknown causes. We describe a mutation in the mineralocorticoid receptor (MR), S810L, that causes early-onset hypertension that is markedly exacerbated in pregnancy. This mutation results in constitutive MR activity and alters receptor specificity, with progesterone and other steroids lacking 21-hydroxyl groups, normally MR antagonists, becoming potent agonists. Structural and biochemical studies indicate that the mutation results in the gain of a van der Waals interaction between helix 5 and helix 3 that substitutes for interaction of the steroid 21-hydroxyl group with helix 3 in the wild-type receptor. This helix 5-helix 3 interaction is highly conserved among diverse nuclear hormone receptors, suggesting its general role in receptor activation.

Publication types

  • Comment
  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't
  • Research Support, U.S. Gov't, P.H.S.

MeSH terms

  • Adolescent
  • Aldosterone / metabolism*
  • Amino Acid Sequence
  • Amino Acid Substitution
  • Base Sequence
  • Binding, Competitive
  • Dimerization
  • Female
  • Heterozygote
  • Humans
  • Hypertension / etiology
  • Hypertension / genetics*
  • Hypertension / metabolism
  • Male
  • Models, Molecular
  • Molecular Sequence Data
  • Pedigree
  • Point Mutation
  • Pregnancy
  • Pregnancy Complications, Cardiovascular* / etiology
  • Pregnancy Complications, Cardiovascular* / metabolism
  • Progesterone / metabolism*
  • Protein Conformation
  • Protein Structure, Secondary
  • Receptors, Mineralocorticoid / chemistry
  • Receptors, Mineralocorticoid / genetics*
  • Receptors, Mineralocorticoid / metabolism*
  • Receptors, Steroid / chemistry
  • Receptors, Steroid / metabolism
  • Steroids / metabolism

Substances

  • Receptors, Mineralocorticoid
  • Receptors, Steroid
  • Steroids
  • Aldosterone
  • Progesterone