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Updated: Aug 13, 2026

Electrophysiological Method for Whole-cell Voltage Clamp Recordings from Drosophila Photoreceptors
Published on: June 13, 2017
TRPgamma, a drosophila TRP-related subunit, forms a regulated cation channel with TRPL
1Department of Biological Chemistry and Neuroscience, The Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland 21205, USA.
Abstract:
TRP and TRPL are two light-sensitive cation channel subunits required for the Drosophila photoresponse; however, our understanding of the identities, subunit composition, and function of the light-responsive channels is incomplete. To explain the residual photoresponse that remains in the trp mutant, a third TRP-related subunit has previously been proposed to function with TRPL. Here, we identify such a subunit, TRPgamma. We show that TRPgamma is highly enriched in photoreceptor cells and preferentially heteromultimerizes with TRPL in vitro and in vivo. The N-terminal domain of TRPgamma dominantly suppressed the TRPL-dependent photoresponse, indicating that TRPgamma-TRPL heteromultimers contribute to the photoresponse. While TRPL and TRPgamma homomultimers are constitutively active, we demonstrate that TRPL-TRPgamma heteromultimers form a regulated phospholipase C- (PLC-) stimulated channel.
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