Targeting G protein-coupled receptor kinases (GRKs) in heart failure

In the human body, over 1000 different G protein-coupled receptors (GPCRs) mediate a broad spectrum of extracellular signals at the plasma membrane, transmitting vital physiological features such as pain, sight, smell, inflammation, heart rate and contractility of muscle cells. Signaling through these receptors is primarily controlled and regulated by a group of kinases, the GPCR kinases (GRKs), of which only seven are known and thus, interference with these common downstream GPCR regulators suggests a powerful therapeutic strategy. Molecular modulation of the kinases that are ubiquitously expressed in the heart has proven GRK2, and also GRK5, to be promising targets for prevention and reversal of one of the most severe pathologies in human, chronic heart failure (HF). In this article we will focus on the structural aspects of these GRKs important for their physiological and pathological regulation as well as well known and novel therapeutic approaches that target these GRKs to overcome the development of cardiac injury and progression of HF.