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Dendrotoxin-sensitive K+ channels in dorsal root ganglion cells
1Laboratoire d'Etude des Régulations Physiologiques C.N.R.S. Strasbourg, France.
Neuroscience Letters
|October 31, 1988
Abstract:
In primary sensory cells, a K current active at resting potential is selectively blocked by the convulsant snake toxin, dendrotoxin. Using the patch-clamp technique, we have examined the characteristics of this K current at the unitary level. The voltage-activated K+ channels were found to have a maximum conductance of 5-10 pS in a 'physiological' K+ gradient. They show negligible sensitivity to calcium at the inner membrane aspect. Blockade by dendrotoxin seems likely to be due to direct action on the K+ channel.