Insulin Receptor Related Receptor (INSRR)

Shier and Watt (1989) isolated genomic DNA that appeared to encode a novel receptor that was structurally as similar to the insulin receptor (INSR) and the IGF1 receptor (IGF1R) as the last two are to each other. This similarity suggested that the insulin receptor-related receptor (IRR) mediates the action of a ligand that is identical or very similar to insulin, IGF1, or IGF2. Kurachi et al. (1992) isolated IRR cDNA from rat brain and examined the expression of IRR mRNA in a variety of rat tissues. They demonstrated that, in contrast to the wide distribution of the insulin receptor and the IGF1 receptor mRNAs, the IRR mRNA is expressed preferentially in the kidney, which indicates that it has unique functions as a member of the insulin receptor family.