Recent advances in GPR35 pharmacology; 5-HIAA serotonin metabolite becomes a ligand

GPR35, an orphan receptor, has been waiting for its ligand since its cloning in 1998. Many endogenous and exogenous molecules have been suggested to act as agonists of GPR35 including kynurenic acid, zaprinast, lysophosphatidic acid, and CXCL17. However, complex and controversial responses to ligands among species have become a huge hurdle in the development of therapeutics in addition to the orphan state. Recently, a serotonin metabolite, 5-hydroxyindoleacetic acid (5-HIAA), is reported to be a high potency ligand for GPR35 by investigating the increased expression of GPR35 in neutrophils. In addition, a transgenic knock-in mouse line is developed, in which GPR35 was replaced with a human ortholog, making it possible not only to overcome the different selectivity of agonists among species but also to conduct therapeutic experiments on human GPR35 in mouse models. In the present article, I review the recent advances and prospective therapeutic directions in GPR35 research. Especially, I’d like to draw attention of readers to the finding of 5-HIAA as a ligand of GPR35 and lead to apply the 5-HIAA and human GPR35 knock-in mice to their research fields in a variety of pathophysiological conditions.