Recombinant Human Taste receptor type 2 member 38 (TAS2R38)

Uniprot Id

P59533

Target Species

Human

Target Name

TAS2R38

Target Full Name

Taste receptor type 2 member 38

Target Function

Receptor that may play a role in the perception of bitterness and is gustducin-linked. May play a role in sensing the chemical composition of the gastrointestinal content. The activity of this receptor may stimulate alpha gustducin, mediate PLC-beta-2 activation and lead to the gating of TRPM5.

Target Subcellular Location

Membrane; Multi-pass membrane protein.

Target Protein Families

G-protein coupled receptor T2R family

Target Tissue Specificity

Expressed in subsets of taste receptor cells of the tongue and exclusively in gustducin-positive cells. Expressed in testis.

Target Synonyms

PTC; PTC bitter taste receptor; T2R38; T2R38_HUMAN; T2R61; TAS2R38; Taste 2 receptor member 38; Taste receptor type 2 member 38; Taste receptor type 2 member 61; taste receptor; type 2; member 38

Target Background

This gene encodes a seven-transmembrane G protein-coupled receptor that controls the ability to taste glucosinolates, a family of bitter-tasting compounds found in plants of the Brassica sp. Synthetic compounds phenylthiocarbamide (PTC) and 6-n-propylthiouracil (PROP) have been identified as ligands for this receptor and have been used to test the genetic diversity of this gene. Although several allelic forms of this gene have been identified worldwide, there are two predominant common forms (taster and non-taster) found outside of Africa. These alleles differ at three nucleotide positions resulting in amino acid changes in the protein (A49P, A262V, and V296I) with the amino acid combination PAV identifying the taster variant (and AVI identifying the non-taster variant).