ISSN:
1432-0878
Keywords:
Gap junction
;
Intercellular junction
;
Insect
;
Arthropod
;
Immunocytochemistry
;
Hellothis virescens (Insecta)
Source:
Springer Online Journal Archives 1860-2000
Topics:
Biology
,
Medicine
Notes:
Abstract Gap junction-enriched fractions were prepared from larvae of the tobacco budworm Heliothis virescens using the NaOH procedure in the presence or absence of protease inhibitors and were analyzed by SDS-PAGE, immunoblotting and EM immunocytochemistry. Protease inhibitor fractions contained a 48-kDa protein in addition to the ∼10 proteins in fractions with and without inhibitors. Three polyclonal antibodies were used as probes for gap junction plaques and proteins: R16, against an ∼40-kDa candidate gap junction protein from Drosophila melanogaster; R17, against the 40-kDa candidate gap junction protein from H. virescens; and R18AP, an affinity purified antibody against a consensus sequence of N-terminal amino acids 2–21 of the H. virescens 40-kDa protein. R16, R17, and R18AP stain the 40- and 48-kDa proteins, R16 and R18AP stain a 64-kDa protein, and R16 stains an ∼30-kDa protein in the absence of inhibitors. Inclusion of protease inhibitors had no effect on gap junction ultrastructure. R16 and R17 label gap junction plaques in crude membrane and NaOH fractions, whereas R18AP exhibits only a low level of reactivity with gap junctions in crude membrane fractions and none with gap junctions in NaOH fractions. The results show that the 30-, 40-, 48- and 64-kDa proteins are immunologically related and are associated with gap junctions in H. virescens, the N-terminus of the 40-kDa protein is relatively inaccessible or easily lost, and the 48-kDa protein is protease-sensitive.
Type of Medium:
Electronic Resource
URL:
http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/BF00307972
