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A Behavioral Assay for Mechanosensation of MARCM-based Clones in Drosophila melanogaster
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The molecular basis of mechanosensory transduction
Kara L Marshall1, Ellen A Lumpkin
1Integrated Graduate Program in Cellular, Molecular and Biomedical, Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons, New York, New York, USA.
Abstract:
Multiple senses, including hearing, touch and osmotic regulation, require the ability to convert force into an electrical signal: A process called mechanotransduction. Mechanotransduction occurs through specialized proteins that open an ion channel pore in response to a mechanical stimulus. Many of these proteins remain unidentified in vertebrates, but known mechanotransduction channels in lower organisms provide clues into their identity and mechanism. Bacteria, fruit flies and nematodes have all been used to elucidate the molecules necessary for force transduction. This chapter discusses many different mechanical senses and takes an evolutionary approach to review the proteins responsible for mechanotransduction in various biological kingdoms.
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