The GPCR Evolution Database (gpcrevolution.org) is an open-access resource that delivers evolutionary analyses focused on the human G protein–coupled receptor (GPCR) superfamily. Developed by Berkay Selcuk and Ogun Adebali at Sabanci University and described in a bioRxiv preprint, the database aims to place every human receptor in an evolutionary context to help researchers interpret molecular function across well-studied and underexplored family members.
The resource emphasizes per-residue evolutionary information so that individual amino-acid positions can be evaluated for how strongly they have been conserved across a receptor's evolutionary lineage. This approach supports transfer of insight from experimentally characterized receptors to related, less-characterized receptors.
The database provides several standard evolutionary data products for more than 800 human GPCRs. For each receptor the resource supplies:
A central design goal is to enable comparisons both within orthologous lineages and between paralogous receptors belonging to the same GPCR family. By contrasting ortholog conservation (sites maintained across species for a single receptor lineage) with conservation patterns across paralogs, users can identify residues likely required for ancestral or shared functions versus residues that are lineage-specific and potentially responsible for functional divergence among receptor subtypes.
The GPCR Evolution Database presents its analytical outputs through interactive visualizations intended for researchers without specialized evolutionary training. Available visual outputs include:
These visualization types are designed to facilitate rapid inspection of conserved and variable regions, to highlight candidate functional sites, and to support hypothesis generation for experimental follow-up.
Beyond single-lineage summaries, the database provides tools for direct comparison of conservation patterns across two or more paralogous lineages. Such comparisons enable users to:
The database thereby supports evolutionary reasoning as a complementary approach to experimental and structural data when investigating GPCR function.
The resource is openly accessible at gpcrevolution.org. The authors also reference an associated code and data repository (a GitHub link is provided in the preprint record). The preprint lists external links for data and code alongside the manuscript entry.
Because the resource is presented as open-access, laboratories without in-house evolutionary expertise can apply the provided alignments, trees and conservation metrics directly to receptor-focused research questions.
The description of the GPCR Evolution Database appears in a bioRxiv preprint; the authors explicitly note that the article has not been certified by peer review. Users should therefore consider that methods, implementations, and results have not undergone formal peer review at the time of posting.
The preprint record provides links to the project site (gpcrevolution.org) and to the project's GitHub repository for code and further details. Any additional methodological specifics, validation experiments, or usage examples beyond the abstract were not reported in the source material and would need to be consulted in the full preprint or associated repositories.
The GPCR Evolution Database delivers a centralized, openly available suite of evolutionary resources for the GPCR superfamily, including ortholog sets, MSAs, phylogenetic trees and per-residue conservation scores for over 800 human receptors. Interactive visualizations (conservation plots, sequence logos and snake plots) and tools for comparing paralogous lineages aim to help researchers infer functional sites and translate knowledge from well-studied receptors to underexplored subtypes. The resource is intended to democratize access to evolutionary analyses, though the underlying preprint has not yet been peer reviewed.