Methods for Studying the Function of Cytomegalovirus GPCRs.

All of the cytomegaloviruses discovered to date encode two or more genes with significant homology to G protein-coupled receptors (GPCRs). The functions of these cytomegalovirus GPCRs continue to be actively studied and it is clear that they exhibit numerous interesting functions in vitro and in vivo. In this chapter, we review the various methodologies that can be used to examine biochemical aspects of viral GPCR signaling in vitro, as well as examine the biological activity of these viral GPCRs in vitro and in vivo in virus infected cells using recombinant cytomegaloviruses.