<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?><?xml-stylesheet type="text/xsl" href="static/style.xsl"?><OAI-PMH xmlns="http://www.openarchives.org/OAI/2.0/" xmlns:xsi="http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema-instance" xsi:schemaLocation="http://www.openarchives.org/OAI/2.0/ http://www.openarchives.org/OAI/2.0/OAI-PMH.xsd"><responseDate>2026-09-25T06:35:37Z</responseDate><request verb="GetRecord" identifier="oai:www.repository.cam.ac.uk:1810/303160" metadataPrefix="uketd_dc">https://api.repository.cam.ac.uk/server/oai/request</request><GetRecord><record><header><identifier>oai:www.repository.cam.ac.uk:1810/303160</identifier><datestamp>2021-04-21T20:45:45Z</datestamp><setSpec>com_1810_219476</setSpec><setSpec>com_1810_256062</setSpec><setSpec>col_1810_219483</setSpec></header><metadata><uketd_dc:uketddc xmlns:uketd_dc="http://naca.central.cranfield.ac.uk/ethos-oai/2.0/" xmlns:dc="http://purl.org/dc/elements/1.1/" xmlns:dcterms="http://purl.org/dc/terms/" xmlns:uketdterms="http://naca.central.cranfield.ac.uk/ethos-oai/terms/" xmlns:xsi="http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema-instance" xmlns:doc="http://www.lyncode.com/xoai" xsi:schemaLocation="http://naca.central.cranfield.ac.uk/ethos-oai/2.0/ http://naca.central.cranfield.ac.uk/ethos-oai/2.0/uketd_dc.xsd">
   <dc:title>Characterisation of the conformational landscape of the β1-adrenergic receptor and development of a strategy towards NMR studies of the protease-activated receptor 1</dc:title>
   <dc:identifier xsi:type="dcterms:DOI">10.17863/CAM.50235</dc:identifier>
   <dc:creator>Frei, Jan Niclas</dc:creator>
   <uketdterms:advisor>Nietlispach, Daniel</uketdterms:advisor>
   <dcterms:abstract>The research conducted for this thesis was aimed at providing a comprehensive
description of the dynamic and conformational landscape of the minimally
thermostabilised avian β1-adrenergic receptor (tβ1AR) using solution state nuclear
magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy. The tβ1AR is a class A G-protein-coupled
receptor (GPCR) and the human counterpart is an important drug target in diseases of
the heart. In chapter 2, a wide range of constructs, labelling reagents and conditions
were tested to make the tβ1AR accessible to 19F NMR spectroscopy. The conditions
optimised in chapter 2 were used in chapter 3 to conduct comprehensive 19F NMR
studies investigating the conformational plasticity of the cytoplasmic ends of
transmembrane domains 6 and 7. Both domains have previously been proposed to be
important structural hotspots for conformational changes during the activation of the
receptor. The work described in chapter 3 tests the conformational response of both
domains in response to a range of ligands and a Gs protein mimicking nanobody. The
data obtained suggested that the cytoplasmic ends of the receptor sample through
several inactive, pre-active and signalling active states and the populations of these
states are tightly controlled by the Gs efficacies of ligands and the binding of
intracellular binding partners. The results will help to explain how extracellular signals
are conformationally transmitted through the receptor to the cytoplasmic face of the
receptor.
In chapter 4, I complemented the results obtained in the NMR spectroscopic studies of
chapter 3 with structural data obtained through second harmonic generation (SHG)
spectroscopy.
In a final step in chapter 5, the knowledge gained from working with the tβ1AR has
been applied to initiate an investigation of the conformational plasticity of a second
GPCR target, the human Protease activated receptor 1 (PAR1). The PAR1 is mostly
associated with regulation of haemostasis and as such a high potential target for
clinical research. I established the construct, expression, purification and 19F labelling
of the PAR1 and obtained initial 19F NMR spectra. The work is an important step
towards understanding the PAR1 conformational landscape.</dcterms:abstract>
   <uketdterms:institution>University of Cambridge</uketdterms:institution>
   <dcterms:issued>2020-04-25</dcterms:issued>
   <dc:type>Thesis</dc:type>
   <uketdterms:qualificationlevel>Doctoral</uketdterms:qualificationlevel>
   <uketdterms:qualificationname>Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)</uketdterms:qualificationname>
   <dc:language>en</dc:language>
   <uketdterms:sponsor>Herchel Smith Fund</uketdterms:sponsor>
   <dcterms:isReferencedBy xsi:type="dcterms:URI">https://www.repository.cam.ac.uk/handle/1810/303160</dcterms:isReferencedBy>
   <uketdterms:embargotype>controlled.access</uketdterms:embargotype>
   <dc:identifier xsi:type="dcterms:URI">https://apollo8-f-pro.lib.cam.ac.uk/bitstreams/76cd5b97-d0b5-4406-aeb3-ceb6d9123d25/download</dc:identifier>
   <uketdterms:checksum xsi:type="uketdterms:MD5">17064349506d1d799a4d89400a12d639</uketdterms:checksum>
   <dcterms:license>https://apollo8-f-pro.lib.cam.ac.uk/bitstreams/2c562c35-64a0-459f-a4d6-47eda75099ed/download</dcterms:license>
   <uketdterms:checksum xsi:type="uketdterms:MD5">87eda9de84448d1f82354d60eee3eb5f</uketdterms:checksum>
   <dc:rights>https://www.rioxx.net/licenses/all-rights-reserved/</dc:rights>
   <dc:subject>G protein-coupled receptor</dc:subject>
   <dc:subject>Nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy</dc:subject>
   <dc:subject>β1-adrenergic receptor</dc:subject>
   <dc:subject>Protease-activated receptor 1</dc:subject>
   <dc:subject>Second harmonic generation</dc:subject>
</uketd_dc:uketddc>
</metadata></record></GetRecord></OAI-PMH>