Connexin 39.9 protein is necessary for coordinated activation of slow-twitch muscle and normal behavior in zebrafish.

ABSTRACT: In many tissues and organs, connexin proteins assemble between neighboring cells to form gap junctions. These gap junctions facilitate direct intercellular communication between adjoining cells, allowing for the transmission of both chemical and electrical signals. In rodents, gap junctions are found in differentiating myoblasts and are important for myogenesis. Although gap junctions were once believed to be absent from differentiated skeletal muscle in mammals, recent studies in teleosts revealed that differentiated muscle does express connexins and is electrically coupled, at least at the larval stage. These findings raised questions regarding the functional significance of gap junctions in differentiated muscle. Our analysis of gap junctions in muscle began with the isolation of a zebr

SUBMITTER: Hirata H 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC3256877 | biostudies-literature | 2012 Jan

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature