Related Experiment Video
Updated: Sep 2, 2025

Making, Testing, and Using Potassium Ion Selective Microelectrodes in Tissue Slices of Adult Brain
Published on: May 7, 2018
Inward rectifier potassium (Kir) channels in the retina: living our vision
Katie M Beverley1,2,3, Bikash R Pattnaik1,2,3,4
1Endocrinology and Reproductive Physiology Graduate Program, School of Medicine and Public Health, University of Wisconsin, Madison, Wisconsin.
Abstract:
Channel proteins are vital for conducting ions throughout the body and are especially relevant to retina physiology. Inward rectifier potassium (Kir) channels are a class of K+ channels responsible for maintaining membrane potential and extracellular K+ concentrations. Studies of the KCNJ gene (that encodes Kir protein) expression identified the presence of all of the subclasses (Kir 1-7) of Kir channels in the retina or retinal-pigmented epithelium (RPE). However, functional studies have established the involvement of the Kir4.1 homotetramer and Kir4.1/5.1 heterotetramer in Müller glial cells, Kir2.1 in bipolar cells, and Kir7.1 in the RPE cell physiology. Here, we propose the potential roles of Kir channels in the retina based on the physiological contributions to the brain, pancreatic, and cardiac tissue functions. There are several open questions regarding the expressed KCNJ genes in the retina and RPE. For example, why does not the Kir channel subtype gene expression correspond with protein expression? Catching up with multiomics or functional "omics" approaches might shed light on posttranscriptional changes that might influence Kir subunit mRNA translation within the retina that guides our vision.
More Related Videos
Related Concept Videos
G-Protein Gated Ion Channels
Sensory...
Photoreceptors and Visual Pathways
Channel Rhodopsins
Rhodopsins belong to the family of cell surface proteins called G-protein coupled receptors,...
The Retina
Anatomy of the Eyeball
Ion Channels
Ion channels are specialized integral membrane proteins on the plasma membrane that allow...

