Pannexin protein expression in the rat middle cerebral artery.

ABSTRACT:

Background

Connexin proteins are well known to participate in cell-to-cell communication within the cerebral vasculature. Pannexins are a recently discovered family of proteins that could potentially be involved in cell-to-cell communication. Herein, we sought to determine whether pannexins are expressed in rat middle cerebral artery (MCA).

Methods

A combination of RT-PCR, immunoblotting and immunohistochemistry techniques was used to characterize the expression pattern of pannexins in rat MCA. A fluorescent dye uptake approach in cultured smooth muscle cells was used to determine whether these cells have functional hemichannels.

Results

We report for the first time that pannexins are expressed in the cerebral vasculature. We reveal that pannexin 1 is expressed in smo

SUBMITTER: Burns AR 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC3290039 | biostudies-literature | 2012

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature