ABSTRACT
Since the landmark discovery of the prototypical second messenger, adenosine 3′,5′-cyclic monophosphate (cAMP), by Earl Sutherland and colleagues more than half a century ago,1,2 the studies of cyclic nucleotide-mediated signaling pathways have produced long-lasting effects on fundamental biology and chemistry, with at least seven Nobel Prizes, including the 2012 Award for Chemistry to Robert Lefkowitz and Brian Kobilka for their studies of the G-protein coupled receptors, being awarded in related research elds. The knowledge gained from these endeavors has also revolutionized the practices of modern medicine and pharmaceutics considering the fact that current therapeutics target the cyclic nucleotide signaling pathway more than any other pathway.
