Pharmacological modulation of GPR84 revealed by dual states structures and immune functional assays

Abstract G-protein-coupled receptor 84 (GPR84) is an orphan class A GPCR selectively activated by medium chain fatty acids and highly expressed in immune cells, where it modulates pro-inflammatory signaling. The structural basis of GPR84 inactivation and antagonism has remained unclear, limiting the rational design of pathway-selective modulators despite its clinical relevance in metabolic inflammation and fibrotic diseases. Here, we report cryo-electron microscopy structures of human GPR84 in inactive and active states. The 3.5 Å inactive structure bound to the antagonist GLPG1205 reveals a lid-like conformation of extracellular loop 2 and an inward reorientation of Arg172, with the antagonist head group blocking the allosteric sodium-binding site. Molecular dynamics simulations further support these findings, identifying an aberrant TM5, TM6 lateral entry gate. By contrast, the 3.17 Å agonist ZQ-16, Gαi complex, shows a rearranged toggle switch and comparative analyses highlight extracellular loop 2 conformational plasticity. Immune functional assays in THP-1 cells demonstrated that ZQ-16 elicited GPR84-dependent activation and cytokine production, which were effectively abrogated by GLPG1205. Mutagenesis combined with functional assays validates key ligand interactions, providing a framework for the rational design of pathway selective GPR84 modulators.