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Related Concept Videos

Urea Cycle01:23

Urea Cycle

The urea cycle describes how liver cells convert ammonia to urea. Ammonia is a toxic waste product of protein catabolism. Land animals must convert ammonia into the less toxic urea which can be safely eliminated by the kidneys through urine. Marine animals excrete ammonia directly, and the surrounding water dilutes the ammonia to safe levels.
Membrane Transporters01:31

Membrane Transporters

Transporters are essential membrane transport proteins with functions related to cell nutrition, homeostasis, communication, etc. Approximately 7% of all genes in the human genome code for transporters or transporter-related proteins.
Transporters are mainly composed of alpha-helices, built from bundles of ten or more helices traversing the plasma membrane. The solute-binding sites are located midway, where some of the helices are broken or distorted, making space for the binding site through...
The Significance of Membrane Transport01:44

The Significance of Membrane Transport

The transport of solutes across the cell membrane is essential for metabolic processes, like maintaining cell size and volume, generating the action potential, exchanging nutrients and gases, etc. Membrane transport can be either passive or active. It can be simple diffusion, facilitated, or mediated transport aided by transport proteins such as transporters and channels.
Transporters facilitate either an active or passive movement of solutes. They can allow a single-molecule transport down its...
Drug Elimination by Renal Route: Tubular Secretion01:15

Drug Elimination by Renal Route: Tubular Secretion

Once the process of glomerular filtration is completed, blood carrying unfiltered drug molecules traverses through efferent arterioles and makes its way into the peritubular capillaries in the proximal tubule. A variety of carriers play a pivotal role in actively secreting drugs from these peritubular capillaries into the tubular fluid. The organic anion transporter transfers acidic drugs, against an electrochemical gradient, from the peritubular capillaries into the renal tubule cells and...
Comparative Excretory Systems02:24

Comparative Excretory Systems

Animals have evolved different strategies for excretion, the removal of waste from the body. Most waste must be dissolved in water to be excreted, so an animal’s excretory strategy directly affects its water balance.
Glucose Transporters01:27

Glucose Transporters

Glucose transporters facilitate the transport of glucose across the cell membrane. In addition to glucose, some glucose transporters can also aid the movement of other hexoses such as fructose, mannose, and galactose.
Facilitated diffusion-glucose transporters (GLUTs) are encoded by the solute-linked carrier (SLC) family 2, subfamily A gene family, or SLC2A. The 14 GLUT protein members are distributed into three classes:

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Related Experiment Video

Updated: Jun 27, 2026

Functional Characterization of Na+/H+ Exchangers of Intracellular Compartments Using Proton-killing Selection to Express Them at the Plasma Membrane
07:38

Functional Characterization of Na+/H+ Exchangers of Intracellular Compartments Using Proton-killing Selection to Express Them at the Plasma Membrane

Published on: March 30, 2015

Mammalian urea transporters.

Craig P Smith1

  • 1University of Manchester, UK. craig.smith@manchester.ac.uk

Experimental Physiology
|November 26, 2008
PubMed
Summary
This summary is machine-generated.

Urea transporters (UTs) encoded by Slc14a1 and Slc14a2 genes are crucial for urea transport. Research using knockout and transgenic mice reveals their function beyond the kidney, offering insights into human conditions.

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Characterization of Membrane Transporters by Heterologous Expression in E. coli and Production of Membrane Vesicles
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Selection of Transporter-Targeted Inhibitory Nanobodies by Solid-Supported-Membrane (SSM)-Based Electrophysiology

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Last Updated: Jun 27, 2026

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Selection of Transporter-Targeted Inhibitory Nanobodies by Solid-Supported-Membrane (SSM)-Based Electrophysiology

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Area of Science:

  • Physiology
  • Molecular Biology
  • Genetics

Background:

  • Urea transporters (UTs), encoded by Slc14a1 (UT-B) and Slc14a2 (UT-A) genes, facilitate urea movement across cell membranes.
  • While extensively studied in the kidney for urine concentration, UTs are present in numerous other tissues.
  • Understanding UTs is vital for comprehending urea metabolism and related physiological processes.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To review the phenotypes of UT knockout and transgenic mice.
  • To highlight advances in understanding UT function through animal models.
  • To compare findings from animal models with human UT mutation phenotypes.

Main Methods:

  • Analysis of existing research on urea transporter (UT) function.
  • Review of phenotypes observed in Slc14a1 (UT-B) and Slc14a2 (UT-A) gene knockout and transgenic mouse models.
  • Comparison of animal model data with human genetic studies of UT mutations.

Main Results:

  • UTs play significant roles in various tissues beyond the kidney.
  • Mouse models have elucidated UT functions and their impact on physiological processes.
  • Phenotypic data from animal models correlate with human conditions linked to UT mutations.

Conclusions:

  • Genetically modified mouse models provide critical insights into urea transporter (UT) biology.
  • UTs have diverse physiological roles, extending beyond renal function.
  • Further research integrating animal and human data will advance understanding of UT-related diseases.