Unitary response of mouse olfactory receptor neurons.

ABSTRACT: The sense of smell begins with odorant molecules binding to membrane receptors on the cilia of olfactory receptor neurons (ORNs), thereby activating a G protein, G(olf), and the downstream effector enzyme, an adenylyl cyclase (ACIII). Recently, we have found in amphibian ORNs that an odorant-binding event has a low probability of activating sensory transduction at all; even when successful, the resulting unitary response apparently involves a single active Gα(olf)-ACIII molecular complex. This low amplification is in contrast to rod phototransduction in vision, the best-quantified G-protein signaling pathway, where each photoisomerized rhodopsin molecule is well known to produce substantial amplification by activating many G-protein, and hence effector-enzyme, molecules. We have now carrie

SUBMITTER: Ben-Chaim Y 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC3021043 | biostudies-literature | 2011 Jan

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature