Anjali Y. Bhagirath

Dr. Anjali Y. Bhagirath


Research Focus & Metrics

Academic Career Length

4Years (2023-Present)

(Calculated once Scilit publication data is synced: current year − year of first publication + 1)

Representative Publications

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10 April 2023 in Biology
Verified
Journal Article
Open access
PDF file
VBVikram Bhatia
Vikram Bhatia
SMSaeid Maghsoudi
Saeid Maghsoudi
MHMartha Hinton
Martha Hinton
ABAnjali Y. Bhagirath
Anjali Y. Bhagirath
NSNisha Singh
Nisha Singh
SDShyamala Dakshinamurti
Shyamala Dakshinamurti
Background: The adenylyl cyclase (AC) pathway, crucial for pulmonary vasodilation, is inhibited by hypoxia. Forskolin (FSK) binds allosterically to AC, stimulating ATP catalysis. As AC6 is the primary AC isoform in the pulmonary artery, selective reactivation of AC6 could provide targeted reinstatement of hypoxic AC activity. This requires elucidation of the FSK binding site in AC6. Methods: HEK293T cells stably overexpressing AC 5, 6, or 7 were incubated in normoxia (21% O2) or hypoxia (10% O2) or exposed to s-nitrosocysteine (CSNO). AC activity was measured using terbium norfloxacin assay; AC6 structure built by homology modeling; ligand docking to examine FSK-interacting amino acids; roles of selected residues determined by site-directed mutagenesis; FSK-dependent cAMP generation measured in wild-type and FSK-site mutants by biosensor-based live cell assay. Results: Only AC6 is inhibited by hypoxia and nitrosylation. Homology modeling and docking revealed residues T500, N503, and S1035 interacting with FSK. Mutation of T500, N503, or S1035 decreased FSK-stimulated AC activity. FSK site mutants were not further inhibited by hypoxia or CSNO; however, mutation of any of these residues prevented AC6 activation by FSK following hypoxia or CSNO treatment. Conclusions: FSK-interacting amino acids are not involved in the hypoxic inhibition mechanism. This study provides direction to design FSK derivatives for selective activation of hypoxic AC6.