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A new class of ligand-gated ion channel defined by P2X receptor for extracellular ATP

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Abstract

EXTRACELLULAR ATP exerts its effects through P2 purino-ceptors1: these are ligand-gated ion channels (P2x)2,3 or G-protein-coupled receptors (Piv, Piu)4- ATP at P2X receptors mediates synaptic transmission between neurons5–7 and from neurons to smooth muscle1, being responsible, for example, for sympathetic vasoconstriction in small arteries and arterioles8,9. We have now cloned a complementary DNA encoding the P2x receptor from rat vas deferens and expressed it in Xenopus oocytes and mammalian cells. ATP activates a cation-selective ion channel with relatively high calcium permeability. Structural predictions suggest that the protein (399 amino acids long) is mostly extracellular and contains only two transmembrane domains plus a pore-forming motif which resembles that of potassium channels. The P2x receptor thus defines a new family of ligand-gated ion channels.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Glaxo Institute for Molecular Biology, 14 chemin des Aulx, Plan-les-Ouates, 1228, Geneva, Switzerland

    Soledad Valera, Nicolas Hussy, Richard J. Evans, Nadia Adami, R. Alan North, Annmarie Surprenant & Gary Buell

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  1. Soledad Valera
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  2. Nicolas Hussy
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  3. Richard J. Evans
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  4. Nadia Adami
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  5. R. Alan North
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  6. Annmarie Surprenant
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  7. Gary Buell
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Valera, S., Hussy, N., Evans, R. et al. A new class of ligand-gated ion channel defined by P2X receptor for extracellular ATP. Nature 371, 516–519 (1994). https://doi.org/10.1038/371516a0

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