G Protein Coupled Receptor 84 (GPR84)

G protein-coupled receptors play a role in cell communication. They are characterized by an extracellular N terminus, 7 transmembrane regions, and an intracellular C terminus.By batch EST database searching, Wittenberger et al. (2001) identified a cDNA encoding GPR84. The deduced 396-amino acid protein, which is 85% identical to its mouse ortholog, has short N and C termini. Northern blot analysis revealed wide expression of a 1.5-kb GPR84 transcript in brain, heart, muscle, colon, thymus, spleen, kidney, liver, intestine, placenta, lung, and leukocytes. In addition, 1.2- and 1.3-kb transcripts were strongly expressed in heart and skeletal muscle, respectively. In brain, expression was strongest in spinal cord and medulla, with lower levels in substantia nigra, thalamus, and corpus callosum.