Publication Date:
1989-03-03
Description:
Gap junctions in the early amphibian embryo may play a fundamental role in the regulation of differentiation by mediating the cell-to-cell transfer of chemical signals. A complementary DNA encoding a gap junction present in Xenopus oocytes and early embryos has now been cloned and sequenced. This protein sequence is homologous to the well-characterized gap junction structural proteins rat connexin32 and connexin43. RNA blot analysis of total Xenopus oocyte RNA showed hybridization to a single 1.6-kilobase band. This messenger RNA is abundant in oocytes, decreases to levels below the sensitivity of our assay by stage 15 (18 hours), and is not detectable in RNA from a number of adult organs. To confirm that the oocyte cDNA encodes a gap junction channel, the protein was over expressed in Xenopus oocytes by injection of RNA synthesized in vitro. Pairs of RNA-injected oocytes formed many more time- and voltage-sensitive cell-cell channels than water-injected pairs.〈br /〉〈span class="detail_caption"〉Notes: 〈/span〉Ebihara, L -- Beyer, E C -- Swenson, K I -- Paul, D L -- Goodenough, D A -- GM18974/GM/NIGMS NIH HHS/ -- GM37751/GM/NIGMS NIH HHS/ -- HL28958-06/HL/NHLBI NIH HHS/ -- New York, N.Y. -- Science. 1989 Mar 3;243(4895):1194-5.〈br /〉〈span class="detail_caption"〉Author address: 〈/span〉Department of Pharmacology, Columbia University, New York, NY 10032.〈br /〉〈span class="detail_caption"〉Record origin:〈/span〉 〈a href="http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/2466337" target="_blank"〉PubMed〈/a〉
Keywords:
Amino Acid Sequence
;
Animals
;
Cell Communication
;
*Cloning, Molecular
;
Connexins
;
DNA Probes
;
Electric Conductivity
;
Female
;
Gene Expression Regulation
;
Intercellular Junctions/physiology
;
Membrane Proteins/*genetics/physiology
;
Molecular Sequence Data
;
Nucleic Acid Hybridization
;
Oocytes/analysis/physiology
;
RNA/analysis
;
RNA, Messenger/analysis
;
Rats
;
Tissue Distribution
;
Xenopus/*embryology
Print ISSN:
0036-8075
Electronic ISSN:
1095-9203
Topics:
Biology
,
Chemistry and Pharmacology
,
Computer Science
,
Medicine
,
Natural Sciences in General
,
Physics
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