TY - JOUR T1 - Membrane Prostaglandin E Synthase-1: A Novel Therapeutic Target JF - Pharmacological Reviews JO - Pharmacol Rev SP - 207 LP - 224 DO - 10.1124/pr.59.3.1 VL - 59 IS - 3 AU - Bengt Samuelsson AU - Ralf Morgenstern AU - Per-Johan Jakobsson Y1 - 2007/09/01 UR - http://pharmrev.aspetjournals.org/content/59/3/207.abstract N2 - Prostaglandin E2 (PGE2) is the most abundant prostaglandin in the human body. It has a large number of biological actions that it exerts via four types of receptors, EP1–4. PGE2 is formed from arachidonic acid by cyclooxygenase (COX-1 and COX-2)-catalyzed formation of prostaglandin H2 (PGH2) and further transformation by PGE synthases. The isomerization of the endoperoxide PGH2 to PGE2 is catalyzed by three different PGE synthases, viz. cytosolic PGE synthase (cPGES) and two membrane-bound PGE synthases, mPGES-1 and mPGES-2. Of these isomerases, cPGES and mPGES-2 are constitutive enzymes, whereas mPGES-1 is mainly an induced isomerase. cPGES uses PGH2 produced by COX-1 whereas mPGES-1 uses COX-2-derived endoperoxide. mPGES-2 can use both sources of PGH2. mPGES-1 is a member of the membrane associated proteins involved in eicosanoid and glutathione metabolism (MAPEG) superfamily. It requires glutathione as an essential cofactor for its activity. mPGES-1 is up-regulated in response to various proinflammatory stimuli with a concomitant increased expression of COX-2. The coordinate increased expression of COX-2 and mPGES-1 is reversed by glucocorticoids. Differences in the kinetics of the expression of the two enzymes suggest distinct regulatory mechanisms for their expression. Studies, mainly from disruption of the mPGES-1 gene in mice, indicate key roles of mPGES-1-generated PGE2 in female reproduction and in pathological conditions such as inflammation, pain, fever, anorexia, atherosclerosis, stroke, and tumorigenesis. These findings indicate that mPGES-1 is a potential target for the development of therapeutic agents for treatment of several diseases. ER -