Drosophila TRP channels require a protein with a distinctive motif encoded by the inaF locus.

ABSTRACT: In both vertebrates and invertebrates, ion channels of the TRP superfamily are known to be influenced by a variety of accessory factors, but the list of interacting proteins is acknowledged to be incomplete. Although previous work showed that Drosophila TRP function is disrupted by mutations in the inaF locus, the mechanism of this effect has remained obscure. Here we show that a previously overlooked small protein, INAF-B, is encoded by the locus and fulfills its critical role in retinal physiology. The 81-aa INAF-B gene product is an integral membrane protein that colocalizes to rhabdomeres along with TRP channels. Immunoprecipitation experiments demonstrate that the two proteins participate in a complex, and blotting experiments show that neither protein survives in the absence of the o

SUBMITTER: Cheng Y 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC2077074 | biostudies-literature | 2007 Nov

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature