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Updated: Jul 13, 2026

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Recording Gap Junction Current from Xenopus Oocytes
Published on: January 21, 2022
Gap junction and purinergic P2 receptor proteins as a functional unit: insights from transcriptomics
Dumitru A Iacobas1, Sylvia O Suadicani, Sanda Iacobas
1Dominick P Purpura Department of Neuroscience, Albert Einstein College of Medicine, Bronx, NY 10461, USA.
The Journal of Membrane Biology
|August 1, 2007
Summary
Coordination analysis of gene expression reveals interconnectedness between gap junctions and purinergic P2 receptors (P2Rs). This study identifies novel proteins involved in P2R signaling pathways and supramolecular complexes.
Area of Science:
- Neuroscience
- Cell Biology
- Molecular Biology
Background:
- Gap junctions and purinergic P2 receptors (P2Rs) are involved in intercellular calcium signaling.
- Previous studies showed Gja1 gene deletion alters P2R gene expression.
Purpose of the Study:
- To identify interlinked genes encoding functionally related proteins using gene expression coordination analysis.
- To evaluate protein interlinkage using pull-downs.
Main Methods:
- Coordination analysis of gene expression.
- Pull-down assays.
- Analysis in brain and cultured astrocytes.
Main Results:
- Identified coexpressed genes encoding proteins in P2R signal-transduction pathways.
- Connexin43 (Cx43), Cx45, and pannexins were found to interact with P2Rs.
- Demonstrated coordination analysis as a strategy to identify interlinked genes.
Conclusions:
- Coordination analysis of gene expression is a novel strategy for identifying proteins in supramolecular complexes.
- Cx43, Cx45, and pannexins are functionally linked to P2R pathways.
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