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Mutagenesis and Functional Analysis of Ion Channels Heterologously Expressed in Mammalian Cells
Published on: October 2, 2010
Ion channels and receptors: molecular targets for behavioral evolution
1Department of Neurobiology and Behavior, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY 14835, USA. rmh4@cornell.edu
Journal of Comparative Physiology. A, Sensory, Neural, and Behavioral Physiology
|October 4, 2000
Summary
Evolutionary changes in ion channels and receptors drive new behaviors. These fundamental neural proteins, present across species, offer diverse mutation targets for species-specific adaptations.
Area of Science:
- Neuroscience
- Evolutionary Biology
- Molecular Biology
Background:
- Ion channels and receptors are crucial for neuronal activity.
- These proteins are early evolutionary developments.
- Most species with nervous systems utilize similar sets of these proteins.
Purpose of the Study:
- To review the evolution and differentiation of voltage-gated ion channels and transmitter-activated receptors.
- To explore how these proteins are targets for evolutionary change.
- To provide examples of species-specific behavioral evolution driven by mutations in these neural proteins.
Main Methods:
- Literature review of evolutionary and molecular studies.
- Analysis of genetic and functional data on ion channels and receptors.
- Case study examples of behavioral evolution.
Main Results:
- Ion channels and receptors evolved early in nervous system evolution.
- A conserved set of these proteins is found across diverse species.
- Mutations affecting structure, splicing, expression, targeting, and modulation drive behavioral evolution.
Conclusions:
- Voltage-gated ion channels and transmitter-activated receptors are key targets for evolutionary innovation.
- Modifications to these conserved neural proteins generate species-specific behaviors.
- Understanding these mechanisms provides insight into behavioral diversity.
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