Incomplete incorporation of tandem subunits in recombinant neuronal nicotinic receptors.

ABSTRACT: Tandem constructs are increasingly being used to restrict the composition of recombinant multimeric channels. It is therefore important to assess not only whether such approaches give functional channels, but also whether such channels completely incorporate the subunit tandems. We have addressed this question for neuronal nicotinic acetylcholine receptors, using a channel mutation as a reporter for subunit incorporation. We prepared tandem constructs of nicotinic receptors by linking alpha (alpha2-alpha4, alpha6) and beta (beta2, beta4) subunits by a short linker of eight glutamine residues. Robust functional expression in oocytes was observed for several tandems (beta4_alpha2, beta4_alpha3, beta4_alpha4, and beta2_alpha4) when coexpressed with the corresponding beta monomer subunit. All

SUBMITTER: Groot-Kormelink PJ 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC2234567 | biostudies-literature | 2004 Jun

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature