The Role of CD73 in the Generation of Extracellular Adenosine for Adenosine Receptor Signaling

Adenosine (Ado) modulates a variety of biological functions such as heart rate, smooth muscle contraction, neurotransmission, neutrophil activation, cytokine secretion, and chemotaxis

through the activation of adenosine receptors (AdoRs) that are ubiquitously expressed on the cell surface. AdoRs have been classified into four subtypes: A

, A

, A

, and A

, according to their affinities for Ado and coupling to G-proteins.