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Related Concept Videos

Gap Junctions01:37

Gap Junctions

Multicellular organisms employ a variety of ways for cells to communicate with each other. Gap junctions are specialized proteins that form pores between neighboring cells in animals, connecting the cytoplasm between the two, and allowing for the exchange of molecules and ions. They are found in a wide range of invertebrate and vertebrate species, mediate numerous functions including cell differentiation and development, and are associated with numerous human diseases, including cardiac and...
Gap Junctions01:27

Gap Junctions

The cytoplasm of adjacent animal cells can exchange small molecules, ions, and secondary messengers via the communication channels which form the gap junctions. These junctions comprise a few hundred to thousands of molecular channels, each made of two halves, called the connexon hemichannel. A connexon is a hexamer of six transmembrane connexin proteins, which assemble radially, thus forming a pore or channel in the center. One connexon hemichannel docks with a corresponding connexon on the...
Non-gated Ion Channels01:24

Non-gated Ion Channels

Ion channels are specialized proteins on the plasma membrane that allow charged ions to pass down their electrochemical gradient. Their main function is to maintain the membrane potential which is critical for cell viability. These channels are either gated or non-gated and can transport more than a thousand ions within milliseconds for the cellular event to occur.
Compared to the gated ion channels, the non-gated channels, also known as leakage or passive channels, have no gating mechanism.
Non-gated Ion Channels01:24

Non-gated Ion Channels

Ion channels are specialized proteins on the plasma membrane that allow charged ions to pass down their electrochemical gradient. Their main function is to maintain the membrane potential which is critical for cell viability. These channels are either gated or non-gated and can transport more than a thousand ions within milliseconds for the cellular event to occur.
Compared to the gated ion channels, the non-gated channels, also known as leakage or passive channels, have no gating mechanism.
Contact-dependent Signaling01:19

Contact-dependent Signaling

Contact-dependent signaling, as the name suggests, requires that communicating cells be in direct contact with each other. This is achieved either through receptor-ligand interactions or by specialized cytoplasmic channels that allow the flow of small molecules between cells. In animal cells, channels called gap junctions facilitate contact-dependent signaling in certain tissues, whereas, plasmodesmata perform a similar function in plants.
Gap Junctions
In animal cells, gap junctions are formed...
Electrical Synapses01:28

Electrical Synapses

Electrical synapses found in all nervous systems play important and unique roles. In these synapses, the presynaptic and postsynaptic membranes are very close together (3.5 nm) and are actually physically connected by channel proteins forming gap junctions.
Gap junctions allow the current to pass directly from one cell to the next. In contrast, in the chemical synapse, the neurotransmitters carry the information through the synaptic cleft from one neuron to the next. They consist of two...

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Related Experiment Video

Updated: Jun 2, 2026

Mechanical Stimulation-induced Calcium Wave Propagation in Cell Monolayers: The Example of Bovine Corneal Endothelial Cells
10:46

Mechanical Stimulation-induced Calcium Wave Propagation in Cell Monolayers: The Example of Bovine Corneal Endothelial Cells

Published on: July 16, 2013

Pannexin channels are not gap junction hemichannels.

Gina E Sosinsky1, Daniela Boassa, Rolf Dermietzel

  • 1National Center for Microscopy and Imaging Research, University of California, San Diego, La Jolla, CA, USA. gsosinsky@ucsd.edu

Channels (Austin, Tex.)
|May 3, 2011
PubMed
Summary

Pannexin oligomers, or pannexons, function as single membrane channels, not gap junction hemichannels. We advocate discontinuing the term "hemichannel" for pannexins due to lack of evidence for intercellular channel formation.

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Related Experiment Videos

Last Updated: Jun 2, 2026

Mechanical Stimulation-induced Calcium Wave Propagation in Cell Monolayers: The Example of Bovine Corneal Endothelial Cells
10:46

Mechanical Stimulation-induced Calcium Wave Propagation in Cell Monolayers: The Example of Bovine Corneal Endothelial Cells

Published on: July 16, 2013

Recording Gap Junction Current from Xenopus Oocytes
09:04

Recording Gap Junction Current from Xenopus Oocytes

Published on: January 21, 2022

A Functional Assay for Gap Junctional Examination; Electroporation of Adherent Cells on Indium-Tin Oxide
11:02

A Functional Assay for Gap Junctional Examination; Electroporation of Adherent Cells on Indium-Tin Oxide

Published on: October 18, 2014

Area of Science:

  • Cellular Biology
  • Membrane Transport
  • Molecular Biology

Background:

  • Pannexins are membrane channel proteins homologous to invertebrate innexins and connexins.
  • Pannexin oligomers (pannexons) have been frequently misidentified as hemichannels.
  • Confusion exists regarding pannexin function and their role in intercellular communication.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To clarify the functional terminology of pannexin oligomers.
  • To differentiate pannexin channel function from connexin gap junctions.
  • To advocate for precise nomenclature in pannexin research.

Main Methods:

  • Literature review and analysis of functional data on pannexin oligomers.
  • Comparison of pannexin and connexin channel properties.
  • Evaluation of evidence for pannexin involvement in gap junctions.

Main Results:

  • Pannexin oligomers function as channels in single membranes.
  • No evidence supports pannexin oligomers forming functional intercellular gap junctions.
  • Pannexons differ functionally from connexons (connexin oligomers).

Conclusions:

  • Pannexin oligomers should be referred to as channels, not hemichannels.
  • The term "hemichannel" is inappropriate for pannexins in the absence of gap junction evidence.
  • Consistent terminology is crucial for advancing pannexin research.