Fiona Murray

Senior Lecturer, University of Aberdeen

Dr. Fiona Murray is a Senior Lecturer in the Aberdeen Cardiovascular & Diabetes Centre at the University of Aberdeen. She earned her PhD in Pharmacology from the University of Glasgow and completed postdoctoral training in the Department of Pharmacology at UC San Diego under the mentorship of Professor Paul Insel. She went on to establish her first independent laboratory in the Division of Pulmonary and Critical Care at UC San Diego. Dr. Murray’s research focuses on the spatial and cell-specific regulation of the second messenger cyclic AMP (cAMP), with the aim of identifying novel drug targets. Her lab has pioneered efforts to repurpose phosphodiesterase 1 (PDE1) inhibitors for pulmonary hypertension and uncovered a novel PDE1–prostacyclin receptor signalosome. A significant area of her work involves the identification and functional characterization of G protein-coupled receptors (GPCRs) in patient-derived cells, including how GPCR expression patterns—so-called “GPCR signatures”—are altered in disease. This line of investigation has led to new insights into the physiology and pharmacology of the orphan receptor GPR75.

Presentation: GPR75: Orphan to Opportunity in Metabolic Syndrome

The orphan G protein-coupled receptor (GPCR), GPR75, has recently emerged as a novel target for metabolic syndrome (MetS): analysis of the UK Biobank revealed that loss-of-function variants in GPR75 are associated with lower body mass index and a reduced likelihood of hepatic steatosis. Building on this genetic evidence, we demonstrated that deletion of GPR75 protects against high-fat-diet–induced MetS [Leeson-Payne et al., 2024]. However, orphan GPCRs are challenging to study as without an endogenous ligand their pharmacology is difficult to define, and it is harder to link receptor expression to cellular function and disease. Our group has undertaken the complex task of dissecting the signalling, regulation, sex-dependent effects, and tissue-specific roles of GPR75 , revealing both the obstacles and opportunities this orphan GPCR presents for MetS.

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